1 hr ago
Nepal Says India Ties Excellent, Focusing on Pragmatic Opportunities
Nepal’s foreign minister said Nepal and India have a very good relationship.
He said politics can sometimes change, but the countries are cooperating well now.
India is Nepal’s biggest trading partner.
Nepal also wants to work with India on energy and electricity.
Nepal has many rivers that can help produce hydropower.
The country hopes to sell clean electricity to India and Bangladesh.
Nepal also wants good business and transportation connections with China.
Its leaders want Nepal to use its location between two large markets to create more opportunities.
Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal described Nepal’s relationship with India as “excellent,” despite occasional political “ebb and flow.”
Khanal said Nepal is taking a pragmatic approach with India and China, emphasizing collaboration over ideological differences.
India accounts for two-thirds of Nepal’s total trade, while energy cooperation is gaining momentum.
Nepal aims to expand hydropower capacity and export clean electricity to India and Bangladesh.
Khanal said Nepal wants to use its location between India and China to become a land-linked gateway for commerce.
- Who
- Nepal Foreign Affairs Minister Shisir Khanal, Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and the governments of Nepal and India.
- What
- Khanal said Nepal has an excellent relationship with India and is pursuing pragmatic cooperation with both India and China.
- Where
- Khanal spoke during a conversation at Asia Society in New York; he and Jaishankar also met at India’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations.
- When
- The remarks were made in New York on September 25; Khanal said he met Jaishankar on Wednesday.
- Why
- Nepal is seeking economic, energy, trade, and connectivity opportunities while managing relationships with its two large neighbors.
Key facts
- Nepal-India relationship
- Described by Khanal as “excellent,” with some political ebb and flow.
- Trade relationship
- Two-thirds of Nepal’s total trade takes place with India.
- Border
- Nepal shares an over 1,700-kilometre open border with five Indian states.
- Energy potential
- Nepal’s rivers have 43 gigawatts of economically viable hydropower potential.
- 2035 target
- Nepal aims to scale hydropower capacity to 28,000 megawatts by 2035.
- Regional exports
- Nepal intends to export clean electricity to India and onward to Bangladesh.
- Diplomatic approach
- Khanal said Nepal is focusing on pragmatic collaboration and opportunities rather than ideological differences and challenges.
Quotes
Shisir Khanal
Nepal’s foreign affairs minister
“Excellent, I’d say. We have had a few high-level visits and exchanges, and I just met Indian External Affairs Minister (S Jaishankar) here in New York as well.”
theprint.in
“One of the things that we really focused on is instead of being very ideological about our relationship, just focusing on pragmatic areas of collaboration.”
theprint.in
Sources
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