Enhancing military cooperation tops the agenda of the Indian Army Chief General, MM Naravane, during his three-day visit to Nepal, commencing tomorrow. General Naravane is slated to meet Prime Minister of Nepal KP Sharma Oli in Kathmandu.
General Naravane said he was looking forward to meeting his counterpart General Purna Chandra Thapa, Chief of the Nepal Army. “I am sure this visit will go a long way in strengthening the bond of friendship that the two armies cherish,” the Indian Army Chief said.
He will be conferred the honorary rank of General of the Nepal Army by the President of Nepal, Vidya Devi Bhandari.
The Indian Army Chief will pay homage and lay a wreath at the Bir Smarak. He will also hand over medical equipment, including ventilators, and interact with trainee officers at the Command and Staff College of Nepalese Army in Shivapuri. India and Nepal bilateral ties were hit in May after Nepal claimed the Lipulekh region in north-eastern edge of Uttarakhand. Lipulekh is a tri-junction between India, Nepal and China.
The Nepalese claim was made after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated a key border road connecting the Lupulekh Pass. Kathmandu responded by issuing a new map that showed Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura, all controlled by India, as part of Nepalese territory, exacerbating the row. It questioned the treaty of Sugauli signed in 1815 after the Anglo-Gurkha war.
