Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli left for China on Thursday morning to participate in the 25th Summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and the SCO Plus meeting to be held from August 31 to September 1 in Tinajin, China.

The Nepali delegation led by the prime minister departed from Tribhuvan International Airport, according to a press note issued by the Prime Minister’s secretariat.

During the summit, he is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with leaders from various countries.

Speaking in the House of Representatives on Friday, the prime minister gave details of his bilateral engagements during the SCO Summit and its sidelines where he is meeting Chinese President Xi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and leaders from several other countries.

But he didn’t mention the meeting with Indian Prime Minister Modi, about which people were particularly curious, in the wake of the recent India-China agreement on reopening a trade route through the Lipulekh pass.

The prime minister in the House also didn’t mention whether he would take up the ongoing controversy over Lipulekh during his China meetings.

After the India-China agreement on Lipulekh on August 18 in New Delhi, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a press statement on August 20 and reaffirmed that the official map of Nepal, as incorporated in the Constitution of Nepal, includes Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh, and Kalapani—located east of the Mahakali river—as integral parts of Nepal.

According to the details provided by the prime minister in the House, so far, bilateral meetings have been confirmed with Russian President Putin, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, Laotian Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chính.

As the final event of the visit, on September 3, alongside other world leaders, the Nepali delegation will participate in the 80th anniversary event commemorating the victory of the Chinese armed resistance against Japan.