By Charles Haviland
BBC News, Kathmandu
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Surprise meeting of Abbas and Olmert ... leader of Nepal's former rebel Maoists.
US ambassador to Nepal Nancy Powell met Pushpa Kamal Dahal, normally referred to as Prachanda, a statement issued by the US embassy in Kathmandu said.
The Maoists came first in last month's national elections but are still listed as a terrorist group by Washington.
The statement said Ms Powell would visit Washington soon for consultations on US-Nepal relations.
'Words and actions'
This is a diplomatic milestone. The US administration is clearly having a rethink on its relations with the Maoists.
The US embassy statement said Ms Powell met Prachanda, whose name means "awesome", on Thursday.
Saying this was their first meeting, the statement added that the two discussed the outcome of last month's elections to a constituent assembly.
It said Ms Powell encouraged the Maoist leader to ensure that the former rebels showed their commitment to the political process through their words and actions.
The Maoists were the biggest single party in recent elections, winning 220 out of 601 seats.
For the past year the US has attempted to bypass the Maoists while dealing with an interim government of which they were members.
Speaking just after the 10 April elections, former US President Jimmy Carter told the BBC he found America's failure to deal with the Maoists "embarrassing".
(BBC)
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