Nepal foreign minister Pradeep Gyawali is to visit India on December 22 and 23 as a return visit, Nepali and Indian officials told news agency. The bilateral ties between Nepal and India is not smooth, the countries stalled high-level visits and exchanges have resumed. India has made three back to back high-level visits from India by Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Army Chief General MM Naravane, and Chief of R&AW Samant Goel.
Indian External Affairs Minister of India, S Jaishankar has invited Nepal foreign minister Gyawali to take part in the Sixth meeting of Joint Commission between Nepal and India at foreign minister level on December 22 and 23. This is the highest level mechanism between the two countries. It has been informed that during the occasion, Gyawali will call on the Prime Minister Modi and other leaders.
Ties between Nepal and India had hit rock-bottom after Nepal issued a new map in May. "Whether I go on an official visit or to take part in the meeting of the joint commission, the boundary dispute would be the major agenda from our side," Gyawali said in the interview. Nepal issued a map in response to India opening a strategic road to the Lipulekh border region, which Nepal claims as its. Then India called it " cartographic assertion" and declined to sit in talks. Nepal and India have several disputes and claims on the bilateral border and both the countries have a dedicated technical team to work on the ground. The joint commission takes up bilateral issues, seeks resolutions or instructs mechanisms to resolve them. Sources said, more than three dozen issues and bilateral agenda has been planned to discuss in the meeting ranging from political to security to trade, commerce, transit, economic cooperation, connectivity, water resources, energy cooperation, inundation, India funded projects in Nepal to economic partnership among others.
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