(TibetanReview.net, Jun18’26) – China has on Jun 15 sought to drive home to visiting Nepali Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal the point that the West, especially the United States, should not be trusted whereas “good neighbour” China is always there to help it. China has long used its aid to Nepal as a leverage to get Kathmandu to make life difficult for Tibetan refugees living in the country for decades while the West has sought to pressure it to help alleviate their suffering.
“Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbours. China will always be a reliable neighbour and reliable partner…,” for Nepal, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Khanal who was on a four-day visit to China during their Jun 15 night meeting, reported kathmandupost.com Jun 16, citing the Chinese foreign ministry.
The report cited a Nepali participant as saying that during the meeting, the Chinese leaders including Wang had raised concerns over Western influence in Nepal, mostly about the American Millennium Challenge Corporation and State Partnership Programme.
These US initiatives look good from outside but their intent is bad, the report cited the Chinese leaders as having said, citing a Nepali official who spoke over the phone from Beijing. “These initiatives only create trouble for China,” the participant has quoted his Chinese counterparts as saying.
“China will always be a trustworthy and reliable good neighbour and partner in Nepal’s development, revitalisation, and modernisation process,” a Chinese foreign ministry statement has quoted Wang as having told Khanal.
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During the meeting, Khanal was stated to have proposed the development of four corridors connecting the northern border to mid-Nepal which also includes a trans-Himalayan railway. He has sought air routes from western Nepal near Hilsa in Humla district.
However, “Beijing was mostly concerned about the graft case against a Chinese firm in Pokhara airport, alleged corruption in the airport built with Chinese loans and about potential US actions in Nepal against China,” the Nepali official has said.
Khanal, aware of China’s political and security concerns following last year’s Gen Z movement, has assured the Chinese leaders in Beijing on Nepal’s commitment to improving its relations with China, trying to dispel the notion that the government in Kathmandu is increasingly tilting towards the West.
“The Taiwan and Tibet issues are China’s internal affairs,” the Chinese foreign ministry statement has quoted Khanal as saying. “Nepal firmly adheres to the one-China policy, supports China’s complete reunification, and will never allow any force to use Nepalese territory to harm China’s interests.”
In his turn, Wang has emphasised that China appreciates Nepal’s firm adherence to the one-China policy and its unwavering support for China on issues concerning China’s core interests, such as Taiwan and Tibet.
“China has always placed its relations with Nepal at the forefront of its neighbourhood diplomacy, and its friendly policy towards Nepal is geared towards all the Nepalese people,” the Chinese foreign minister was quoted as saying.
Khanal has said on X after meeting Wang that the two sides held “a comprehensive discussion on the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including in the areas of connectivity, border management, trade, technology transfer and multilateral cooperation.
“China’s development is an opportunity for Nepal. Nepal welcomes Chinese investment and is willing to provide a fair, rule-of-law, and friendly business environment for Chinese enterprises.”
On this, Wang has said China was willing to work with Nepal to jointly advance the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), focusing on cooperation in areas such as power grids, highways, ports, and aviation, to help Nepal transform from a landlocked country to a land-linked country.