Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairman Ravi Lamichhane Prepares for China Visit Amidst Government's Lack of High-Level Foreign Trips

Kathmandu. Since the formation of the government led by the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), no high-level visits have been made from the government's side to any country. Instead, the chairman of the ruling party RSP, Ravi Lamichhane, has already visited neighboring India. He is preparing to visit China in the near future. Foreign Minister Shishir Khanal has visited both neighboring countries (India and China). However, no foreign visit has been made from the Prime Minister's level so far. Some have taken the visit of the ruling party chairman to a neighboring country positively at a time when no foreign visit has been made from the Prime Minister's level. It is said that Chairman Lamichhane has taken the initiative to visit neighboring countries to maintain balance in relations with them, with the objective that relations with the government should not deteriorate, even if the Prime Minister does not visit. Although preparations are underway for Chairman Lamichhane to visit China, the date of the visit has not yet been announced. Some have said that RSP Chairman Lamichhane is doing 'damage control' work. Some have put forward the argument that he is going on foreign visits to accumulate power. Chairman Lamichhane visited India from May 18-22. He visited India at a time when relations between Nepal and India were strained at the government level. The proposed visit of Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri to Nepal was canceled because Balen did not give him an appointment. On the other hand, border disputes were also ongoing between Nepal and India. In such a situation, RSP Chairman Lamichhane visited India. The welcome received by Chairman Lamichhane in India also garnered significant attention. On his visit at the invitation of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he met with high-level leaders including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar. The government level also gave great importance to that visit of the chairman. According to former ambassador and international affairs expert Tanka Karki, the visit of the ruling party chairman has a positive impact on the government. He said, 'Although a party visit does not benefit the government as much as a visit by the Prime Minister, it does benefit the government as it is the ruling party.' Foreign affairs expert Nilambar Acharya says that the visit of any party chairman cannot fulfill the needs of the government. 'It can help strengthen the relationship between governments, but it cannot fulfill its needs,' he said. Acharya stated that a visit by the Prime Minister or a high-level representative accordingly is necessary to discuss the country's needs and situation. 'When visiting on behalf of the party, it is about party-to-party matters. Matters of the government are not discussed there,' he said. 'As the leader of the ruling party, it might be given some importance, but that visit cannot work for the government.' Visit Without Government Involvement Chairman Lamichhane did not involve any government side in his visit. Although he went on the visit after informing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he did not take any officials from the ministry with him. A former secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, 'Since RSP is the ruling party, it would be good to have a Foreign Ministry official accompany him on the visit. Because it is the ruling party, various agreements and understandings may be discussed there. Officials from the ministry may be needed at that time.' Although RSP Chairman Lamichhane is preparing for a visit to China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not been informed about it so far. Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lobahadur Kshetri stated at a press conference organized last Friday that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not received any formal information about the visit of RSP Chairman Lamichhane.