India, Nepal to boost ties; discuss border issue
NEW DELHI: Foreign ministers of India and Nepal on Friday held a comprehensive review of all aspects of bilateral ties and explored ways to further strengthen cooperation in key areas of connectivity, trade and energy, in the first high-level engagement between the two nations after relations nosedived following a boundary row last year.
In the sixth India-Nepal Joint Commission Meeting (JCM), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Nepalese counterpart
Pradeep Kumar Gyawali discussed cooperation in a range of areas including economy and trade, border management, power, oil and gas, water resources, capacity building and tourism among others, an official statement said.
Gyawali, accompanied by Nepalese Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal arrived here on Thursday on a three-day visit in the midst of a political turmoil in Kathmandu, triggered by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s sudden decision to dissolve Parliament and call for fresh elections.
Ties between India and Nepal came under severe strain after Nepal last year published a new political map that showed the three Indian territories - Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipulekh - as part of Nepal.
In the statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) mentioned border management among several areas of cooperation that the two sides discussed in the meeting. However, it was not immediately known whether the dispute over the three areas figured in the talks.