Xi Jinping wrapped up his brief visit to Nepal on Sunday. He is the
first Chinese president in over 20 years to visit the Himalayan
country.To get more chinese online news, you can visit shine news official website.
Nepalese and Chinese officials signed 17 agreements dealing with health,
agriculture, industry, tourism and infrastructure, among other areas,
the South Asian country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Sunday.
Xi had arrived for a brief stopover on his way home from India, where he
had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi for talks on combating terrorism
and rebuilding ties after the Kashmir dispute.
Nepal's 'transformation'
Nepalese authorities said that President Xi promised to help their country transform from a landlocked to a land-linked nation.
"I hope the countries will enhance their connectivity," said the Chinese
president, adding that Beijing and Kathmandu would elevate their
relationship to strategic partnership.
In 2017, Nepal signed up to China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a
multinational infrastructure program that includes the building or
upgrading of highways and airports in the country.Nepalese President
Bidhya Devi Bhandari, who on Saturday hosted a banquet to honor Xi,
urged Chinese investors to invest more in Nepal.
"We need foreign investment. We urge Chinese investors to invest in areas such as infrastructure, hydropower," she said.
Xi also held talks with Nepal's former prime minister, Sher Bahadur
Deuba, and senior leaders of the ruling Nepal Communist Party.The short
visit by the Chinese leader was not welcomed by everyone in Nepal. A
number of Tibetans had been rounded up amid fears of protests.
Sixty years ago, China ordered troops to crush a revolt in Tibet against
Beijing's rule, leaving the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader,
fleeing to India, where he still resides.
Roughly 20,000 exiled Tibetans live in Nepal, but under pressure from
China, the Nepalese government has taken an increasingly hard-line
stance on their activities.
Tanka Prasad Karki, a former Nepalese diplomat, elaborated further on
the lack of a presidential visit. "China was waiting for a strong
government in Kathmandu, as the last few decades were marked by a Maoist
war, frequent changes of government and political instability."
