Kathmandu, Aug 17 (PTI) Nepal’s new Foreign Minister Arzu Deuba Rana will embark on a five-day official visit to India from Sunday during which she will meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to discuss ways to strengthen the bilateral ties and promote cooperation, the foreign ministry here said on Saturday.
Rana is visiting India from August 18 to 22 at the invitation of Jaishankar, the foreign ministry said in a statement.
“During the visit, Foreign Minister Rana will hold a bilateral meeting with her Indian counterpart Jaishankar and discuss matters of mutual interest for strengthening Nepal-India relations and promoting cooperation,” it said.
As part of the regular exchange of high-level visits between Nepal and India, Rana’s trip will further consolidate the age-old, deep and multi-faceted relations between the two neighbours, the statement said.
“Nepal is a priority partner of India in its Neighbourhood First policy. The forthcoming visit will provide both sides an opportunity to discuss and review the progress in bilateral cooperation and help in advancing our ties further,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement in New Delhi.
The visit of Rana, who is also the spouse of Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, comes after the cabinet meeting headed by Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli on Thursday endorsed the India-visit programme of a delegation led by the Foreign Minister, Communications and Information Technology minister Prithvi Subba Gurung had earlier said.
This will be Rana’s first official visit to a foreign country after assuming charge.
The visit by Rana is taking place a week after Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visited Nepal.
Rana, 62, was earlier scheduled to visit Delhi for a routine health checkup but the visit turned into an official one after she received an invitation from the Indian government, according to Foreign Affairs ministry sources.
According to sources, the foreign minister will visit a prominent private hospital in New Delhi for a follow-up checkup related to her previous operation for hyperparathyroidism. She is scheduled to return to Nepal on August 22. PTI SBP SCY AKJ SCY SCY
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