Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Friday confirmed that Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali will visit India next week, The Himalayan Times reported. The visit will be the first high profile visit by any Nepali official since the border standoff between the two nations. 

The announcement came when Oli was addressing a political meeting in the western part of the country. He also informed the issue of the Gauriphanta border point will also be discussed in the meeting. 

Gyawali is also expected to discuss Covid vaccines procurement from India. 

The visit by holds special significance as it comes amid the domestic political crisis in Nepal. On 20 December last year, Oli dissolved the House of Representatives after facing months of push back from Dahal within the party.

As the political storm unfolded in Nepal, India remained neutral throughout, and termed the crisis an “internal matter.” China, on the other hand, got involved openly in the matter and even had sent a four-member delegation, headed by a senior CPC leader. 

Significantly, just weeks before,  Oli’s rival Dahal remarked that he wants a balanced relation with both neighboring Asian giants. 

In November last year, Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringala undertook his first visit to Nepal. The visit by the foreign secretary was delayed for months as relations between the two nations marred by the border disputes. 

Before Shringla, Chief of Indian external intelligence agency R&AW, the Indian Army chief, also visited Kathmandu in a bid to repair damaged ties.