Nepal’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Shisir Khanal will visit India from June 5 to 7 at the invitation of his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, the government said in a statement on Thursday.
Khanal will hold a formal meeting with Jaishankar in New Delhi. "The two sides will discuss matters of mutual interest, with a view to enhancing cooperation across key areas including trade, investment, connectivity, energy and people to people ties," according to the Nepal government’s statement.
As part of regular exchange of high-level visits, this one will further consolidate the enduring and multifaceted bilateral relations between Nepal and India, said the foreign ministry.
The visit will be the first by a minister from Prime Minister Balendra Shah's government to India since it assumed office in March.
Nepal's leaders have traditionally attached importance to early engagement with New Delhi, reflecting the close political, economic and people-to-people ties between the neighbours.
Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah recently has reignited a border dispute with India after claiming in parliament that Nepal has also encroached on Indian territory.
“You will be surprised to know a fact that I have learned recently, only after becoming prime minister: Not only has India encroached Nepali territory, but Nepal has also encroached Indian territory in many places,” Shah said during his address to parliament.
He did not elaborate on which parts of India he believed Nepal had encroached on.
“Now, both countries should study the facts and sit together as friends and resolve the issue,” the Nepali leader added, while highlighting that China and the United Kingdom should be involved in mediating the dispute.
India on June 2 rejected any third country involvement in its border dispute with Nepal, highlighting that there exists bilateral mechanisms to discuss all issues between New Delhi and Kathmandu.
The long-running dispute between Nepal and India over border territories including Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani has periodically bubbled up over the years. The conflict is a mix of contested history, geography, politics and mapping.
India has maintained that these territories are part of the state of Uttarakhand and has consistently denied any claim by Kathmandu on these three regions.
The new Prime Minister of Nepal indicated that the only way to solve these disputes is through dialogue between New Delhi and Kathmandu.
The issue over the three territories intensified in 2019 after Nepal objected to a new map published by New Delhi highlighting Kalapani as part of Indian territory.
In 2020 India inaugurated a new road linking Lipulekh to the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage route. In June 2020 Nepal amended its constitution to incorporate a new map including the three areas within its borders.