KATHMANDU: Foreign Minister Dr. Arju Rana Deuba is scheduled to visit New Delhi, India, to attend the Raisina Dialogue from March 17 to 19.
While in India, there are indications that she may seek meetings with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
She also intends to extend an invitation for the Sagarmatha Sambad. However, her press advisor Ekraj Pathak has not confirmed any high-level political meetings at this time.
“Her program to attend the Raisina Dialogue has been scheduled,” Pathak said, “but no decision has been made regarding political meetings. It cannot be confirmed at the moment that an initiative is being taken to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”
Despite this, there are reports that the Foreign Minister is attempting to arrange a meeting with Prime Minister Modi through Nepal’s Ambassador to India, Dr. Shankar Sharma. While Ambassador Sharma is reportedly working to facilitate such a meeting, neither side has officially confirmed these efforts.
This visit comes amidst ongoing diplomatic efforts to improve Nepal-India relations. Since Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s appointment, tensions have been noted, with a sideline meeting between Oli and Modi occurring in New York during the 79th UN General Assembly.
The delay in Prime Minister Oli receiving an official invitation from India has been a point of discussion. Foreign Minister Rana had previously extended an invitation from Prime Minister Oli to Modi during a visit to India on August 19, but no response has been received.
Following this, Prime Minister Oli visited China from December 2 to 5, signing the BRI Framework Agreement, which has been interpreted as further straining Nepal-India relations.
Rana has made two previous trips to Delhi since assuming her post, but has not managed to secure high level political meetings. She has also publicly stated in an interview with The Hindu that she expects Prime Minister Oli to visit India by June 2025, and that sideline talks between the Prime Ministers may occur at the BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok in April.
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