Relations with India in excellent condition: Foreign Minister Khanal

KATHMANDU: Minister for Foreign Affairs Shishir Khanal has said that Nepal’s relations with India are in excellent condition.

Speaking at an event organized by the Asia Society in New York, Khanal said that the relations between Nepal and India are multi-dimensional and strong.

Stating that around two-thirds of Nepal’s total foreign trade is with India, he said the social and cultural relations between the two countries are deep.

Minister Khanal also held talks with External Affairs Minister of India Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.

He said that Nepal-India relations and common interests of both countries were discussed during the meeting. Khanal said that the progress of development partnership and energy cooperation was also discussed. He stressed the need to further strengthen the relations with India.

Responding to a query on Nepal’s balancing between India and China, Khanal said Nepal’s foreign policy is now being pursued not only from ideological point of view but also on the basis of practical cooperation and economic opportunities.

According to him, although there could be disputed issues including border with neighbouring countries, Nepal should move ahead by identifying possible areas of cooperation.

He cited energy trade with India as an example of such a pragmatic approach.

According to Khanal, energy and trade cooperation are important for Nepal’s economic development as Nepal’s economy is heavily dependent on imports.

The Foreign Minister said that Nepal’s geographical situation can be converted into an economic opportunity. He said that Nepal has an open border of more than 1,700 kilometers with India.

He said that Nepal has about 43 GW of hydropower capacity that can be used economically and work is being done to generate 28,000 MW by 2035. He said that there is a possibility of exporting clean energy to Bangladesh via India.

Khanal said that Nepal should not be seen only as a small landlocked country between India and China. He said that although both India and China are big neighbors, it should not determine the limits of Nepal’s economic ambitions.

He also said that Nepal wants to develop practical and trade-oriented relations with China. He said that the goal is to transform Nepal from a land-linked economy into a land-linked economic hub by connecting the northern and southern connectivity routes not as an alternative to each other.