Pradeep Gyawali, the foreign minister of Nepal, is set to start his three-day tour to India on Thursday, the first visit by any high ranking Nepali official since the border controversy erupted between two neighbours last year. The procurement of Covid-19 vaccines among other issues is likely to come up in discussion.  

Gyawali is visiting India from 14 January to 16 January at the invitation of Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. A high-level delegation of Nepali officials, including the foreign and health secretaries of Nepal, will accompany him on the tour.

“The Joint Commission Meeting will discuss the whole gamut of Nepal-India bilateral relations, including trade, transit, energy, boundary, COVID-19 cooperation, infrastructure, connectivity, investment, agriculture, tourism, culture, among others, said the foreign minister of Nepal in a statement on Tuesday. 

Significantly, the visit comes almost a month after Nepali Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli dissolved the lower house of parliament, plunging the country into a political crisis. India, however, refused to take sides in the crisis, calling it a ‘domestic matter’ of Nepal.

Significantly, in an interview to an Indian media on Monday, Oli reiterated his claim on disputed Kalapani, Lipulekh, and Limpiyadhura territory. However, on the question of overall ties with India, he described it as “better than before”. 

Interestingly, the border issue was in the back burner for some months now, as both sides moved towards repairing the damaged ties. Nepali media described his reiteration of the claim directed at the domestic audience as Oli faces another general election in April and May.