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’Nepal Can Be a Bridge between China and India, ’Xi Jinping Told Nepal’s Premier
23 March 2016
EIRNS—During his meeting with the visiting Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli in Beijing today, Chinese President Xi Jinping said, "Nepal can be a bridge between China and India," discussing the trilateral China-Nepal-India relationship. Xi also said he hopes Nepal will benefit from development in China and India. "It is in the common interest of the two big neighbors that Nepal enjoys stability and development," Xi was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency. Calling for more efforts to speed up the establishment of a China-Nepal free trade area and boost cooperation on connectivity, energy, post-earthquake reconstruction, and industrial capacity, Xi said he hopes Nepal will join China’s Belt and Road (Silk Road) initiative. On March 21, during his talks with Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, Nepalese Prime Minister Oli had signed agreements with China on trade diversification, cross-border connectivity, and infrastructure development, and cooperation on energy, tourism, finance, education, and culture. One of the most important and sensitive agreements signed, was to build a strategic railway link between the two countries through Tibet. A memorandum granting official status to Nepal as a dialogue partner within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was signed at the SCO Secretariat on March 21. "Shanghai Cooperation Organization Secretary General Rashid Alimov and Secretary of the Nepalese Foreign Ministry Shankar Das Bairagi signed the |