KATHMANDU: Newly appointed Chinese ambassador to Nepal Wu Chuntai on Monday held discussions with Nepali Congress president Sushil Koirala.

Sources at the Koirala residence, where the meeting was held, informed that the meeting centered on the formation of Interim Electoral Council, China-Nepal relationship and Nepal’s commitment to one-China policy among other.

In response to his queries, Koirala informed Chuntai that political parties were looking forward to hold CA elections by mid-July and added that incumbent Interim Electoral Council was part of their commitment.

He urged the ambassador to provide constructive support from the Chinese government to Nepal while it was moving forward to seek another mandate from the people.

On the occasion, envoy Chuntai reiterated China’s commitment to Nepal’s prosperity and national integrity.

The meeting is part of Chuntai’s introductory meetings with Nepal’s key politicians and officials.

KATHMANDU: China has new leadership in Beijing and a new representative in Kathmandu. Both have stressed on pursuing a comprehensive diplomatic strategy at the global and regional level. And of course, as the closest neighbor, it has special plans for Nepal.

The newly-appointed Chinese envoy to Nepal, Wu Chuntai, while elaborating on some dimensions of this new strategy, said that the comprehensive package includes continuing economic support and the new dimensions that will be pushed further are cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

These packages, the details of which are still in the making, are part of new Chinese leadership’s policy to engage and strengthen economic and cultural ties in the region and across the globe. In his address given on the sidelines of the first session of the 12th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi had said that Chinese diplomacy will stress on actively “participating in international and regional affairs to build the international system”.

Echoing the statement made by Jiechi, Chuntai in his debut press meet, held some days after he assumed responsibility at the Nepal mission, elaborated on the profound cultural and social similarities that citizens of both nations shared and pledged that China will provide any type of support to Nepal.

“It is the Chinese government´s policy to support Nepal safeguard her sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Chuntai said at the press meet which featured some video footage that provided background to his statements on China’s strategy on international and regional affairs.

After elaborating how Nepalese and the Chinese people were connected to each other through ‘salt-gold’ trade across the Himalayas or the White Pagoda monument built hundreds of years ago in China, Chuntai focused on delivering home the point- “China looks forward to support its neighbors in their endeavours and of course bringing economic support to Nepal is a priority.”

While adding the cultural exchange dimension in Sino-Nepal ties, Chuntai and the new Chinese leaderships’ stress remained on extending economic cooperation.

But is Nepal ready for it?

Presently with more than US $ 100 million investment, over 20 Chinese companies are actively involved in Nepal’s development and commercial projects. Though Chinese side has expressed willingness and in some cases commitment too, some mega projects have been a victim to ‘unstable politics’ of the recipient country.

West Seti Hydropower, Pokhara International Airport, Kathmandu Ring Road upgrading have been in the offing for some time now. Though Chuntai in the press conference said that progress was being made in implementing these projects, the delay in implementing these projects were primarily victimized by Nepal’s political transition and by what can be called ‘personal-politics’.

Nepal is at the centre of contention among global actors where western and non-western forces are at play. If the recent claims of many Nepali politicians and political analyst is considered, then political stability and a homogenous foreign affairs policy among Nepalese political parties will remain elusive for some time now, at least unless the new constitution is promulgated.

Some months back, Chuntai’s predecessor at the embassy, Yang Houlan, had expressed concern over the growing instability and corresponding friction in implementing development projects in Nepal. Houlan’s concern hinted that even though China was willing to open up its resources for Nepal, lack of stable government and policy was depriving it from it.

China had assisted Nepal in some mega projects in the past too. But as Houlan remembered, those projects were implemented and completed as they faced relatively less friction owing to the centralized governance and ideology at the time.

But again as he figured out, times have changed in Nepal and this time around they are turbulent than ever as the nation continues limping ahead without a constitution to guide it. Adding to it, the growing mistrust and confrontation between Nepal’s major political powers, between major and fringe parties and between national and regional political forces has rendered the nation’s political future uncertain.

An Optimist Strategy:

The new Chinese leadership seemed euphoric in announcing their preparations to leading the global economy and in focusing their diplomatic strategy primarily in the regional affairs. And so was Chuntai’s announcement at the press meet.

The proposed people-to-people and cultural exchanges, which features a Chinese cultural event in Kathmandu in the near future, sure seems to be an effort to strengthen ties between people of both nations and to reinforce the cultural and trade foundations between both nations.

People-to-people exchanges are far better options to build and strengthen existing relationship in comparison to centralized top-down model of assistance. It’s the safest road to build ever-lasting bilateral ties.

KATHMANDU: The Chinese embassy in Kathmandu recently submitted a diplomatic note to Nepal’s foreign minister over the self immolation carried out by a Tibetan monk in Kathmandu.

The note has reminded Nepal’s Maoist government of its commitment to One-China policy and its subsequent commitment to control Free-Tibet activities in Nepali soil.

The note was submitted following the self-immolation and subsequent death of a Tibetan monk identified as Thundup Dopchen in Kathmandu recently.

In the diplomatic note, Chinese ambassador to Nepal, Yang Houlan has said, ” Nepal is firm with its commitment to one-china policy and I am confident it can avert this kind of incidences in the future,” the Kanatipur Dainik quoted on Tuesday.

“The self immolation incident of Boudha has become an issue of public interest. As an incident that is against the spirit of the Buddhist philosophy, it should be taken seriously,” the report quoted the envoy further.

Nepal is home to around 30 thousand Tibetan refugees scattered around the nation and though time and again there have been Free Tibet movement in Nepal, self immolation by Dopchen was the first ever in Nepal.
The report has claimed that Dopchen had arrived in Kathmandu from Sinchuan province of China with a plan to self immolate on March 10- the day marked as Tibet’s Independence day. However, he had self immolated him by brushing aside the plan that Nepal’s intel was able to gather.

Following the incidence, Nepal has tightened flow of Tibetans via all transits including Rasuwa, Sindhupalchowk, Tatopani among others have been tightened.

KATHMANDU: While the nation has one China policy as the bed rock of its bilateral relationship with China, two Nepali human rights activists have been openly assisting the Free Tibetan Movement.

The movement backed by the Western nations has been a major threat to the Chinese side and consecutive Nepali government since the monarchy era have opposed to allow the use of Nepali soil to be used against its Northern neighbor.

However, Nepal Human Rights Organization President Sudeep Pathak and Kapil Shrestha have a different opinion on the issue that propels them to participate movement’s actitivities in Nepal.

Nepali vernacular national daily, The Saurya Dainik, reported that though Pathak had earlier denied any involvment in the movement, he recently agreed to it when the newspaper produced an image that pictured him participating in a meeting with the Free Tibet Movement activists.

” I am not related to the Tibetan refugees therefore there is no chance of participating in their meetings,” Pathak was quoted saying earlier to the newspaper while challenging to produce evidence if otherwise.

But he changed his statement as soon as the newspaper produced the image.

I am a pacifist. I will participate in any program that is related to pacifism.Like the sunshine, the world is aware of that,

Pathak was quoted.

Pathak’s claims that the movement has been pacifist is however controversial given the self-immolation trend taken by the Tibetan refugees. Recently a Tibetan Refugee had self immolated in the center of Kathmandu.

However another human rights activist Shrestha did not bother to conceal his participation in the movement. Shreshtha said,

Its my duty to participate in any program that is related to human rights. If the Chinese government had not violated human rights, then why would hundreds of Tibetan self immolate?”Shrestha said adding, “some of Chinese agents can object to my allegiance, but i don’t care about them.”

Quoting anonymous sources, the newspaper further reported that both Pathak and Shrestha receive massive funds from India based Potala monastery sourced from the United States.

Adding to it, the duo has also been reported to have been in regular contact with Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama.