Nepal and Israel issued joint stamps to mark the long standing friendship between the two countries on Tuesday.

A Stamp Signing and First Cancellation ceremony was held at the Russian Cultural Center, Kathmandu, to mark launching of the first joint postal stamps amidst the presence of Government officials, diplomats, officials from Postal Services Department and Embassy of Israel.

Stamps were signed and First Day Cancellations were marked by Israeli Ambassador to Nepal Hanan Goder for the Israeli side and by Minister for Information and Communications Raj Kishor Yadav for the Nepali side.

The joint stamp issue between the two nations is the first one and also the first time that Nepal has issued a stamp simultaneously with another country. The stamp is themed 'Mount Everest and the Dead Sea", that includes the highest peak on Earth, The Mount Everest in Nepal, and the lowest point on Earth, The Dead Sea in Israel.  The stamps are valued at 5 Shekels in Israel and at NPR 35 in Nepal.

The Israeli Ambassador expressing delight said, "These two stamps are wonderful examples of the long term partnership and friendship between our two countries and people."

The first Nepalese stamps were issued in April 1881 as a set of three which were valued at one anna, two annas and four annas.  These were initially perforated and printed on European made paper.

Israel issued its first postage stamps on 16 May 1948, two days after independence was proclaimed.  The first sets of definitive stamps were valued at 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 50, 250 and 1000 mils and were printed as perforated or as rouletted variations.

Israel and Nepal have enjoyed 52 glorious years of Diplomatic ties between the two countries since the diplomatic relations were established in 1960s.  Since then, both the countries have seen the friendship grow and foster.  Israel believes in sharing technology and knowledge and has been conducting many joint training programs especially in the fields of medicine, agriculture, early childhood development and technology in Nepal. Nepalnews.com