Indian Foreign Secretary Concludes Nepal Visit

Kathmandu: Visit Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri concluded a two-day Nepal visit on Monday. He was invited by the Foreign Secretary of Nepal, Amrit Bahadur Rai. Foreign Secretary called on the President of Nepal, Ramchandra Paudel, the Prime Minister of Nepal, K.P. Sharma Oli and the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba.

He conveyed to them greetings from the leadership in India and briefed them on the progress being made in various aspects of the mutually-beneficial bilateral cooperation between the two countries, reads the statement of Ministry of External Affairs of India.

During the visit, Foreign Secretary handed over a formal invitation to Prime Minister Oli from the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi to visit India on mutually convenient dates.

The two Foreign Secretaries held wide-ranging discussions, reviewed the progress made in various bilateral initiatives and discussed opportunities for further collaboration including possible outcomes that could form a part of the agenda of PM Oli’s forthcoming visit to India.

Foreign Secretary also met the Chief of Army Staff of Nepal, General Ashok Raj Sigdel and handed over defence stores and equipment including Light Strike Vehicles (LSVs), critical care medical equipment and military animals to the Nepali Army.

During the various engagements, both sides noted with satisfaction the concrete progress in recent years in diverse areas of bilateral cooperation, including physical connectivity, digital connectivity, defence & security and energy cooperation, says the Ministry of External Affairs of India.

Moreover, Foreign Secretary also met other senior political leaders of Nepal. “Nepal is a priority partner of India under its Neighbourhood First policy. The Foreign Secretary’s visit continued the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries and helped in advancing our bilateral ties further,” the External Ministry’s statement reads.