Foreign Secretary Misri meets Nepal PM Oli, focus on Sept Delhi visit

On his two-day trip, Misri will also meet Nepal’s President Paudel, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba and leaders across party lines, reaffirming the tradition of high-level India-Nepal exchanges.

Kathmandu: Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Sunday called on Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli during his two-day visit to the Himalayan nation.

The meeting took place at the Prime Minister’s Office at Singhdurbar, according to the Prime Minister’s secretariat.

Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava was also present at the meeting.

The foreign secretary arrived in Kathmandu earlier in the morning at the invitation of his Nepalese counterpart Amrit Bahadur Rai.

Misri will call on President Ramchandra Paudel and also meet Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba. He will also hold a bilateral meeting with Nepalese Foreign Secretary Rai later in the day.

He will also meet top leaders of major political parties including Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda.”

Misri’s visit reflects the “tradition of regular high-level exchanges between India and Nepal, and reaffirms the commitment to the #NeighbourhoodFirst policy,” the Indian embassy here said in a social media post.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs here said in a statement on Saturday that connectivity, development cooperation and other issues will be discussed during his visit.

Misri will return home on Monday after wrapping up his visit.

People familiar with the matter said the main focus of Misri's engagements in Kathmandu will be on preparing the ground for Nepal Prime Minister Oli's trip to New Delhi next month.

Oli is likely to visit India around September 16, according to diplomatic sources. However, the official announcement is yet to be made.