Indian Army chief General MM Naravane is set to visit Nepal early next month in the first high-level visit between the two countries since a border row hit ties earlier this year. Army chief’s visit is being seen as India’s attempt to strengthen the bilateral relationship that was undergoing through a rough patch.
Naravane’s three-day visit to Nepal beginning November 4 is expected to have a significant diplomatic overtone with India seeking to reset relations with the Himalayan nation after the ties came under severe strain following a bitter border row.
In keeping with a long-standing convention between the armies of the two countries, Nepal’s President Vidya Devi Bhandari will “confer the honorary rank of general of the Nepali Army to General Naravane in an investiture ceremony during this visit.”
India also confers the honorary rank of “General of Indian Army” to the Nepal Army Chief.
According to sources, General Naravane is scheduled to hold extensive talks with the top civilian and military brass of Nepal including his counterpart General Purna Chandra Thapa on key issues such as further boosting the management of the nearly 1,800 km-long border between the two countries.
Naravane’s visit will provide an opportunity for the two sides to push defence and security cooperation after bilateral relations were affected by a border row that erupted in May.
It will be the first high-level visit from India to Kathmandu since the ties between the two neighbours came under strain after Nepal came up with a new political map in May claiming several areas in Uttarakhand to be part of its territory.
India’s decision to send the Army Chief to Nepal is seen as part of a larger exercise by New Delhi to rejuvenate relations with Myanmar, the Maldives, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Afghanistan in the wake of greater efforts by China to expand its influence in the region.
According to official data, Nepal’s imports from India in 2017 were worth $6.52 billion while its exports to the country were pegged at $420.18 million. The ties between India and Nepal came under strain after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the 80-km-long strategically crucial road connecting the Lipulekh pass with Dharchula in Uttarakhand on 8 May.
