Nepal FM responds 'positively' to invitation for India-Nepal minister-level meeting in Dec

Following India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla’s visit to Kathmandu, Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali “responded positively” to the invitation for next month’s India-Nepal minister-level meeting in Delhi. An official from the Nepal Foreign Ministry told ANI that Shringla had extended the invitation and Gyawali had agreed to attend the December meeting. The two leaders will be discussing issues of mutual interest. 

The official said, “FS Shringla extended the invitation to discuss the issues of mutual interest that will be beneficial for both the nations. The invitation has been extended for minister-level meeting for December. Nepali Foreign Minister responded positively”. 

Shringla on Thursday called on the Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari during his two-day visit to the Everest country. He also met Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli at the latter's residence, where he conveyed greetings of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed ways to further improve the bilateral relations between India and Nepal. 

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The Foreign Secretary, in his maiden visit to Nepal, started the trip by meeting his Nepali counterpart Bharat Raj Paudyel. Shringla also met Nepali Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali earlier on Thursday. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, Shringla gifted 2,000 vials of Remdesivir to Pradeep Gyawali, a drug that is being used widely in the treatment of severe COVID-19 patients. 

After meeting with Paudyel, Shringla said that he had a very productive discussion with his Nepalese counterpart on issues of mutual concern. Shringla also said that the two diplomats discussed ways to forge stronger bilateral ties between India and Nepal. Shringla also said that India would prioritise "neighbours like Nepal" to make affordable COVID-19 vaccines accessible when available. 

READ: India Sees Itself As Nepal's 'foremost Friend And Development Partner', Says Shringla

India-Nepal relations

India and Nepal, who otherwise share a strong bilateral relationship, witnessed strained ties after Kathmandu unveiled a new political map that claimed Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and Lipulekh as an integral part of their territory. India strongly objected to the move by Oli's government. After the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world, Nepal had blamed India for spreading the disease in its territories without citing any evidence, which again had soured the relationship between the two-historically and traditionally connected countries. 

(With inputs from ANI)

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