Had extremely fruitful and positive meeting with PM Modi: Oli

Bangkok, April 4 (IANS) Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli said on Friday that he had "extremely fruitful and positive" discussions with PM Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the 6th BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok.

"I had a cordial meeting with my dear friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji. Our conversation was extremely fruitful and positive. I express my pleasure at this cordial meeting," PM Oli posted on X.

Nepal is considered a priority partner of India under the 'Neighbourhood First' policy and Friday's meeting continued the tradition of regular high-level exchanges between the two countries with both leaders reaffirming the commitment to continue to work towards further deepening the multifaceted bilateral partnership.

"Had a productive meeting with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in Bangkok. India attaches immense priority to relations with Nepal. We discussed different aspects of India-Nepal friendship, especially in sectors like energy, connectivity, culture, and digital technology. We also talked about some of the key positive outcomes from this year's BIMSTEC Summit, especially in areas of disaster management and maritime transport," PM Modi posted on X after the meeting.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that both leaders expressed satisfaction at the progress in enhancing physical and digital connectivity, people-to-people linkages, and in the domain of energy.

Both leaders had previously met during the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, last year.

"We hope that their meeting in Bangkok will pave the way for Oli's long-awaited official bilateral visit to India," Nepali media quoted a foreign ministry official as saying ahead of the meeting.

India and Nepal enjoy age-old civilisational and cultural ties that are exemplified by the strong people-to-people link between both countries. India is also the largest developmental donor of Nepal, with the major portion of developmental assistance focussed on large-scale infrastructure projects under grants, necessary for the rapid development of Nepal, in the field of priority sectors such as health, education, and connectivity.

--IANS

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