Discussions on Foreign Minister Rana's India visit intensify

Kathmandu, December 18 — Foreign Minister Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba has been on a Europe visit for nearly two weeks. She is scheduled to return to Nepal on December 20, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Meanwhile, discussions about Foreign Minister Rana's visit to India have also intensified. However, no official information about it has been made public yet. A source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs mentioned that the details of her visit are still undecided.

During her European visit, it has been reported that Foreign Minister Rana is preparing for a trip to India. A source stated that she is planning to attend an event in India and also visit for a health check-up.

According to the source, although Foreign Minister Rana planned to have high-level meetings during her visit to India, the visit could not be finalized due to a scheduling conflict.

On Tuesday, a meeting was held between Amrit Bahadur Rai, the acting Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Prasanna Srivastava, the Acting Indian Ambassador to Nepal, to discuss the topic of Foreign Minister Rana's visit to India and other current matters.

It is said that during the meeting, discussions took place regarding Foreign Minister Rana's visit to India and other contemporary issues. However, discussions regarding Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s visit to India were not part of the conversation, according to sources.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials mentioned, "Preparations for a visit to India have been ongoing internally since KP Sharma Oli's appointment as Prime Minister, and that preparation is still in place."

According to a source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the schedules for meetings and other events will only be confirmed once the visit to India is finalized. Foreign Minister Rana will participate in an event in Germany on Wednesday. After this event, she has plans for several high-level meetings before returning to Nepal. However, it has not been decided whether she will return directly to Nepal or first visit India and then return to Nepal.

If high-level meetings in India are confirmed, Foreign Minister Rana is expected to return to Nepal through India, otherwise, she will return directly to Nepal, according to the source. Efforts are being made to arrange high-level meetings, including with Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar.

Foreign Minister Rana is scheduled to address an economic conference in India. This conference, organized by the Nepal Contemporary Studies Center and the Foundation for Economic Growth and Welfare (EGROW) of India, is scheduled for the December 20. However, if the timing for high-level meetings does not align, it is expected that she will return to Nepal directly from Europe instead of visiting India.