Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, are likely to meet on September 22 at 5: 30pm local time in New York on the sidelines of the Summit of the Future to be organised by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. Prime Minister Oli will leave for New York leading the Nepali delegation on September 20.

This will be Prime Minister Oli’s first foreign visit since assuming office on July 15.

While the meeting between Oli and Modi has yet to be confirmed, according to the foreign ministry officials, they have received positive signals from the Indian side.

“The meeting has been proposed and we have yet to get the confirmation,” said Amrit Rai, foreign ministry spokesperson.

The Nepali side has been keenly pursuing the meeting with Modi.

According to Indian media reports, Modi will attend the summit of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) in Delaware, the hometown of US President Joe Biden, on September 21. After the Quad summit, Modi will travel to New York on September 22 and will address the Indian diaspora.

Nepal’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Lok Bahadur Thapa held talks with Parvathaneni Harish, India’s permanent representative to the United Nations, last Monday in New York and explored the possibility of a meeting between the two leaders.

Besides attending the Summit of the Future and addressing the United Nations General Assembly, the prime minister is also scheduled to speak at two prestigious universities—Harvard and Columbia.

“We may have internal issues, but I won’t take along the language, style, or impulsive behaviour that undermine the dignity of our parliament [to the UNGA],” said Oli while addressing the House of Representatives on Sunday.

He informed the House that during his address at the UNGA, he would focus on key global issues, including climate change, global governance and multilateralism.

The prime minister plans to highlight the issue of “prosperous Nepal, happy Nepali,” Nepal’s Sustainable Development Goals and progress made, the impact of climate change, Nepal’s foreign policy, its commitment to multilateralism, its contribution to UN peacekeeping operations, the reform agenda for global governance, and the concerns of least developed and landlocked countries.

“Nepal is a sovereign and independent country. We want to uphold our pride and fulfil our legitimate interests based on international accountability, while always protecting the national interest. We are also committed to ensuring that our national interests are not compromised,” said Oli.

“Nepal is a good and responsible neighbour and we expect similar kind of behaviour from others,” said the prime minister, adding, “We don’t want to be seen as unreliable friends.”

“We aim to respect the interests of our neighbours and expect the same in return. The foundation of our foreign policy is ‘amity with all, enmity with none.’ We are guided by this principle,” said the prime minister.

“We will not interfere in the sovereignty of any country, and we will not accept interference in our own. This is our established policy. Our foreign policy is guided by the United Nations charter, principles of the non-aligned movement, non-interference in internal matters, and non interference in the sovereignty of any country,” said Oli.

The prime minister said that he would speak at the UNGA about Nepal’s constitution, democratic norms and values, Nepal’s identity as a sovereign and independent nation, national interests and international commitments.

Ahead of the prime minister’s visit, Foreign Minister Arzu Rana left for Canada on Monday evening to attend the meeting of women foreign ministers scheduled for September 10 to 22 in Toronto.

Co-hosted by the governments of Canada and Jamaica, the two-day event will bring together women foreign ministers from over 15 countries, said a foreign ministry statement.

Minister Rana will address a range of issues, including the challenges and the representation of women in public positions, leadership and governance.

After the meeting, on September 21, she will leave for the US to participate in the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York to join the Nepali delegation led by Prime Minister Oli, said the ministry.

During her stay in the US, she will address various forums and participate in bilateral meetings. She will then head for Doha, Qatar to lead the Nepali delegation at the Third Summit of Asia Cooperation Dialogue scheduled for October 2 and 3. Rana is scheduled to return home on October 4, said the ministry.