Nepal and India discussed the border dispute during the visit of Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issuing a press statement Thursday night informed that the border dispute was discussed during the meeting of Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal with his Indian counterpart Shringla.
"They (the two sides) also discussed the boundary matters and exchanged views on completing the boundary work in the remaining segments," the statement read.
The border dispute between the two countries has escalated since India included the Nepali territory of Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipu Lekh in its political map in November 2019 eventually leading to Nepal issuing a new map including the territory encroached by India and then amending the Constitution to adopt the new map.
This is the first time that the border dispute has been officially discussed in a bilateral meeting since the start of escalation last November.
Nepal also broached the topic of COVID-19 vaccines during the meeting. "The two sides shared their experiences on the efforts made to fight against Covid-19 pandemic. They discussed matters related to cooperation in the context of the progress made by India toward the development of COVID-19 vaccines," the statement reveals.
"They reviewed various aspects of Nepal-India relations covering trade, transit, connectivity, infrastructure, energy, agriculture, investment, culture, people to people relations, among others," the ministry statement reads. "They discussed ways to strengthen the strong cultural and civilizational bonds that exist between the two countries and further build on the solid foundation of the multifaceted friendly relations for the benefit of the two countries and peoples."
