Week 1-7 february:
• Within hours of the end of commercial blockade in Birgunj, the biggest trading post on the Indo-Nepal border, Nepal declared that Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli would visit India on February 19.
• Mr.Oli’s planned visit to Delhi has been a contentious issue in Nepal, especially since India had been accused of supporting the blockade in Birgunj and the rest of the border. Mr. Oli himself added to the dilemma by often making accusatory statements targeting India.
• The China-Nepal economic agreements, meanwhile, added substance to the reports that the Nepal Prime Minister might choose to visit Beijing first, instead of Delhi.
• But according to reports, Mr. Oli’s plan to visit China too has been finalised and would follow shortly after the Delhi visit. Prime Minister Oli will visit Beijing for the Boao meet in March.
• The date for a Sino- Nepal bilateral visit is also under discussion.
• However, the background work for Mr.Oli’s visit is expected to take place during the two-day visit by Nepal’s Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel, who will reach Delhi on Sunday.