A key deal was reached in Beijing yesterday, setting the path for China to make big inroads into Nepal. Seven years after an original understanding for Kathmandu to be a part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI, today’s agreement establishes the foundation for project execution.
KP Sharma Oli opted to visit Beijing instead of New Delhi, breaking convention as Nepal’s prime minister’s first port of call following election results. He has been in China since Monday to work closely with Xi Jinping and finalize the agreement.
China and Nepal “signed the framework for Belt and Road Cooperation today,” Nepal’s foreign office said in a post on X today, without providing any other information.
The Government of Nepal and the Government of the People’s Republic of China signed the Framework for Belt and Road Cooperation today. pic.twitter.com/6oTlDvTzIe
— MOFA of Nepal 🇳🇵 (@MofaNepal) December 4, 2024
Nepal agreed to be part of China’s Belt and Road project in 2017, but no progress has been made in the last seven years due to a lack of a proper framework for executing the project. Nepal’s government and opposition are concerned over debt concerns and the potential risks in mega projects executed by China. The Nepal Congress, a key ally of Prime Minister Oli’s party, has vehemently opposed any projects funded by Chinese loans.
China funded the airport project in Pokhra, Nepal’s second-largest city, by loaning over $200 million. Nepal opened the airport last year despite India’s concerns, but has had to deal with losses due to the lack of international flights. This can be partly due to a slender demand for airlines and partly due to India’s refusal to planes using its airspace to do so.
Pokhra, located around 120 kilometers from Kathmandu, is less than 20 minutes from the India border by commercial flight. India had to shut its airspace out of a national security compulsion because Kathmandu ignored New Delhi’s concerns that China may use the airport to station its military aircraft and helicopters, a massive national security threat for New Delhi.
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Source: NDTV
