At the end of its three-day visit to Kathmandu, a tripartite EU delegation on 15 December urged all democratic and constitutional forces to rally behind the present coalition government and form a united front. "The EU sees no alternative to a government with a broad-based democratic mandate," the delegation said. The 'Troika' delegation added that elections in the present circumstances may be difficult but said: "It is important to begin working towards this goal. Creating a secure environment is essential to allow free and fair elections."

Reiterating that the EU was ready to offer full support to the peace process, the Troika delegation urged the Maoists to respond positively without preconditions to the government's invitation for dialogue. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba had set a 13 January 2005 deadline last month for the Maoists to come for dialogue. He had said that if the rebels failed to turn up at the negotiating table within the stipulated time, he would go for elections. "If the Maoists fail to respond positively without preconditions, it will serve as evidence that the CPN (M) has no real intention of pursuing political objectives through legitimate means," the delegation said.

An EU Troika is made up of representatives from the EU presidency, the next member state to hold the presidency, the European Commission and the High Representative.