Border issue and COVID Vaccine top priorities: Foreign Minister’s Delhi Visit

KATHMANDU: Foreign Minister Pradip Gyawali is leaving for Delhi today to attend the meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Commission. Nepal is preparing to raise the issue of border dispute in the meeting of the Foreign Ministerial Commission. 

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had recently said in a public program that Limpyadhura, Lipulek and Kalapani would be brought back, as they belong to Nepal.

He said that these issues would be discussed during the Foreign Minister’s visit to India. Minister Gyawali also said that talks would be held with India on the purchase of vaccines against COVID-19. Sources said that an agreement has not been reached yet, but Nepal will give priority to the vaccine made in India if its effectiveness is confirmed. 

Foreign Minister Gyawali and his Indian counterpart S. Jayshankar will jointly chair the meeting of the Joint Commission on Friday. In the meeting, Nepal is preparing to raise the border dispute issue. According to a Foreign Ministry source, there is a secretarial mechanism to resolve the border dispute. There is a possibility that the ministerial meeting will be given a certain time, and the responsibility to resolve this issue will be given to this secretarial mechanism. 

Nepal wants to discuss this issue more as the border issue is not complicated, except in Kalapani and Susta areas. The Prime Minister said in a recent interview with an Indian television channel that Kalapani, Lipulek and Limyadhura would be brought back as they are part of Nepal and 2021 could be the year of resolving the issue between Nepal and India.