KATHMANDU: Naveen Srivastava has been appointed as the Ambassador of India to Nepal.

Srivastava, who led the East Asia division in India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), is succeeding Vinaya Mohan Kwatra, who assumed office as the Foreign Secretary of the Indian government on May 1.

According to media reports, Srivastava had been playing a key role in the diplomatic and military talks with China to tackle the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control that began some two years ago.

His selection as the new ambassador to Nepal is seen as meaningful as India has taken the growing footprint of China in Nepal as a major strategic challenge.

Besides leading the MEA division dealing with China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea and Mongolia and representing India during meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on border affairs, Srivastava has participated in the meetings of the Indian and Chinese military commanders to address the standoff at the LAC.