Chinese Foreign Minister holds talks with Nepal's top leadership

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday held talks with Nepal's top leadership, including Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, and the two countries signed agreements in health and education sectors to boost the bilateral ties. Foreign Minister Wang, who arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday on a three-day official visit to Nepal, held talks on wide-ranging issues of bilateral cooperation with his Nepalese counterpart Pradeep Kumar Gyawali after which the two sides signed three deals.

China will provide Rs 350 million to establish a well-equipped hospital in Manang district in North-West Nepal. China also agreed to send volunteer teachers to Nepal and provide 5000 sets of tarpaulins to the country that can be used during the time of emergencies. The Chinese foreign minister also announced Rs 16 million assistance for flood victims in Nepal. Prior to signing the deals, the two foreign ministers had held

Wang also called on Prime Minister Oli and President Bidya Bhandari. Various important issues, including the implementation of the past agreements reached between the two countries, review of bilateral relations and the upcoming visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Nepal figured in the talks.

China has been investing heavily in Nepal in the last few years to enhance the connectivity and infrastructure. In June last year, China and Nepal signed eight agreements for developing major infrastructure projects in the land-locked Himalayan nation to further deepen bilateral ties.

Nepal Prime Minister Oli, during his brief tenure in 2016 widened China-Nepal ties by signing the transit trade treaty with China to reduce the dependence of his land-locked country on India at the height of the Madhesis agitation. He sought the expansion of road links through Tibet besides extension of China's railway to Nepal through the Himalayas.

On Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said in Beijing that China and Nepal were "comprehensive cooperative partners" with everlasting friendship. "In recent years under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), we have stepped up efforts to build cross Himalayan, all dimensional connectivity network," he said, referring to infrastructure projects linking Tibet with Nepal.

The two countries are also discussing plans to extend the Chinese railway network in Tibet to Nepal. "Our cooperation in all sectors is growing rapidly," Geng said referring to Nepalese President Bhandari's recent visit to Beijing during which the two countries signed the protocol to operationalise transit treaty for Nepal to access Chinese ports.

"This visit by State Councillor Wang is to implement our leaders' consensus and promote exchange of cooperation as well as all round development of bilateral relations," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)