Kathmandu: India and Nepal on Wednesday reviewed their bilateral ties and discussed a range of areas of cooperation during talks between Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and his Nepalese counterpart Amrit Bahadur Rai in Kathmandu. The discussions also focused on preparations for Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah's proposed visit to India later this month.
The Nepalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the talks covered the "entire gamut of Nepal-India relations", including exchanges of high-level visits, connectivity, trade, development cooperation, energy and people-to-people relations.
The ministry said the discussions underscored the strong bond between the two countries and focused on further strengthening their multifaceted partnership and longstanding ties of friendship.
The Indian Embassy in Nepal said in a post on X that Misri's meeting with Rai covered issues of mutual interest and helped prepare for Shah's forthcoming visit to India.
Misri also paid a courtesy call on Nepal's Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu. The two sides discussed ways to expand bilateral cooperation through upcoming high-level engagements.
Khanal said the close relations between Nepal and India "will gain new heights", according to the Nepalese foreign ministry. The discussions also covered cooperation in energy, trade, sports and education.
Misri separately met Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle and discussed economic collaboration between the two countries, according to foreign ministry sources.
Misri is in Nepal on a two-day official visit at the invitation of Rai. He arrived at Tribhuvan International Airport on Wednesday, where he was received by Nepal's Joint Secretary Gehendra Rajbhandari and India's newly appointed Ambassador to Nepal, Sudhakar Dalela.
The visit is aimed at reviewing the full spectrum of bilateral relations and exchanging views on matters of mutual interest, with particular attention to preparing for Shah's proposed official visit to New Delhi later this month.
Misri is also scheduled to meet Prime Minister Shah before returning to New Delhi on Thursday. The Nepalese prime minister is expected to visit India towards the last week of November, according to sources.
The visit would be Shah's first trip to a neighbouring country since he assumed office in March. Foreign ministries in both countries are preparing for the proposed visit.
This is Misri's second visit to Kathmandu since he became India's Foreign Secretary in July 2024.
India and Nepal share historical, cultural, religious, and people-to-people ties, alongside extensive cooperation in trade, connectivity, energy, including hydropower, development projects, and security.
Nepal, a landlocked country, relies heavily on India for the movement of goods and services. Its access to the sea is through India, and it imports a large proportion of its requirements from and through its southern neighbour.
The two countries have often described their relationship as an age-old "Roti Beti" bond.
However, bilateral relations experienced some strain in May after Shah called for the involvement of China and the United Kingdom in addressing the longstanding border dispute between India and Nepal.
India rejected any role for third parties in resolving the boundary issue, saying the two countries already had an established bilateral mechanism to address all aspects of the dispute.
The boundary disagreement concerns Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura and Kalapani. India has consistently maintained that the territories are part of Uttarakhand.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI)