(TibetanReview.net, Dec20’25) – Nepal and China carried out a security patrol on Dec 19 in the former’s northern Korala border area in Upper Mustang, which adjoins Chinese-ruled Tibet, reported english.khabarhub.com Dec 20. The report bears significance in view of China’s outgoing Ambassador Chen Song having asked Prime Minister Sushila Karki to check anti-China activities that may take place in the country’s northern districts during a farewell call on Dec 17.
Despite sub-zero temperatures during the winter season, joint security personnel deployed along the Nepal–China (meaning, Tibet) border have begun regular patrols to strengthen monitoring in the Korala area, the report said.
The border areas of Nepal’s northern districts are populated mostly by citizens of Tibetan ethnicity or origin. Korala is a significant high-altitude mountain pass (around 4,660m) and a key vehicle border crossing between Nepal’s Mustang district and Tibet, serving as a vital, low-cost route for trade and pilgrimage, especially for Mount Kailash – Lake Mansarovar, Until 2008, when Nepali monarchy was abolished, Upper Mustang was the Kingdom of Lo, an ethnic Tibetan kingdom that was a suzerainty of the Kingdom of Nepal.
In late Dec 1999, the 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje fled Tibet through this area, following which, China immediately built a border fence.
The report cited Armed Police Force (APF) Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhesraj Giri, who is the chief of APF 33rd Battalion Headquarters, Jomsom, as saying the joint patrol had been initiated to prevent possible crimes during winter, curb illegal smuggling and poaching, maintain peace and security, and control unwanted activities in the border region. The patrols will continue regularly throughout the winter season, he has added.
Giri and APF Inspector Arun Bhandari, in-charge of the Border Out Post (BOP) Nechung, have said the joint patrol was carried out by a combined team from the Korala-based APF BOP and Chinese security personnel, conducting security patrols around four border pillars on the Dolpa side of the Korala area.
Bhandari has said a 15-member joint security team was deployed for the patrol—10 personnel from the Nepal side under his command and five from the Chinese side led by Captain Gesang Dundrub.
Security agencies have stepped up patrols as the Korala border point and surrounding areas often remain uninhabited during winter, increasing the risk of illegal activities taking advantage of reduced presence, the report said.
Earlier, on Dec 14, security personnel from the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) Lomanthang Area Conservation Office, along with APF BOP and Chhoser Police Post, had also conducted a joint patrol across border pillars numbered 25 to 28 amid heavy snowfall, the report said.