PoliticsDiplomacy
Misri calls on Nepal PM Balendra Shah, briefs him on India visit plans
On the second day of his Kathmandu trip, the Foreign Secretary carried Prime Minister Modi's greetings and discussed what Shah's visit to New Delhi later this month could deliver.
Key points
- Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri called on Prime Minister Balendra Shah in Kathmandu on Thursday.
- He briefed Shah on preparations for his visit to India, expected later this month.
- Shah thanked India for its help after the Rasuwa-Bhotekoshi floods.
Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri called on Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah at Singha Durbar in Kathmandu on Thursday, the last day of a two-day visit meant to lay the ground for Shah’s first official trip to New Delhi.
Misri conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s greetings and briefed Shah on India’s preparations for the visit, which is expected later this month, and on the outcomes it could bring. A joint press release said the two sides “reaffirmed their commitment to all-round enhancement of the bilateral partnership”, and that Misri “highlighted the wide-ranging engagement and overall progress in diverse areas of bilateral cooperation.” He told Shah that bilateral mechanisms on energy, water resources, trade and transit and civil aviation were meeting regularly.
Misri also said that preparations to run the Ayodhya-Janakpur train in Nepal were complete; Nepal’s Prime Minister’s Office said a trial run had taken place that day.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, Shah thanked the Government of India for its prompt support after the Rasuwa-Bhotekoshi floods, when India sent relief material and a rescue team, and praised Modi’s solidarity. He also asked about working with India to develop Nepal’s sports sector.
On Wednesday, Misri held delegation-level talks with his counterpart Amrit Bahadur Rai and called on Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal, Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle, Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha and Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal. On Thursday he met members of Nepal’s parliament, and was reported to have met Rastriya Swatantra Party president Rabi Lamichhane.
The date of Shah’s visit to New Delhi has not been announced.