During a special ceremony at the Nepal Army headquarters in Kathmandu on Monday (August 18), Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met with Nepal’s Chief of Army Staff Suprabal Janasewashree General Ashok Raj Sigdel. During the visit, Misri presented to him a collection of defence and medical equipment.

The items included 6 light strike vehicles, 2 military dogs for breeding, 6 army horses, and a batch of medical supplies. Before the handover, Misri met General Sigdel to discuss defence cooperation and other matters between the two countries. A day earlier, he also held talks with Amrit Bahadur Rai.

Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on X that the discussions centered on connectivity, trade, and development, underscoring the robust relationship between India and Nepal.

What all Misri did during his Nepal visit?

Misri arrived in Nepal on Sunday (August 17) for a two-day visit, invited by his Nepalese counterpart Rai. During his stay, he met several senior leaders including President Ramchandra Paudel, PM K P Sharma Oli, Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba, opposition leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda,” and Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba.

The Indian Embassy in Nepal posted on X that the handover symbolised the close ties between the two armies and reflected the strong defence partnership built on trust and cooperation.

Later that day, Misri met Prime Minister Oli again to explore ways to strengthen collaboration across different sectors. The Indian Embassy said he reaffirmed the deep cultural links and strong partnership between India and Nepal. He also met President Paudel to pass on greetings from Indian leaders and to update him on the progress of bilateral relations.

In a separate meeting, Misri spoke with Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba. According to the embassy, they had a meaningful exchange of views on shared interests and discussed how to further develop the broad-based partnership between the two countries.

India-Nepal relations improving?

Before the visit, Ministry of External Affairs stated that Nepal remains a key priority under India’s Neighbourhood First policy. The ministry described the trip as a chance to deepen bilateral ties, noting that India-Nepal relations have seen solid progress in recent years across many areas of cooperation.

India and Nepal share a 1,751 km long border (across 5 Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand). India-Nepal relations are defined by deep-rooted people-to-people links as well as commonalities in religion, language and culture.