India agrees to resume military aid to Nepal

NEW DELHI, Sunday (AFP) India has agreed to resume military aid to Nepal following its suspension after King Gyanendra dismissed his prime minister and seized power on February 1, local media reported said Sunday.

The Hindu newspaper, quoting an unnamed senior Indian official, said New Delhi would deliver a consignment of arms to the Royal Nepalese Army "very soon". New Delhi's reported change in stance came after a meeting between the Nepalese king and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of the Asia-Africa summit in Jakarta on Saturday.

The king, for his part, told Singh that democracy would be restored "sooner than later" in Nepal, the Hindu reported.The Press Trust of India news agency quoted Singh as telling the king that he would "look at this (request) from the proper perspective".

Most Indian newspapers Sunday noted a change in India's policy towards the royal coup in Nepal with the Hindustan Times describing the meeting between Gyanendra and Singh as a "climbdown" on India's part.