China firmly supports Nepal in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, exploring a development path that suits its own national conditions.
In December 2018, I was appointed the Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Nepal. In more than 1,000 days and nights, I visited many places in Nepal, met people from all walks of life, enjoyed the beautiful snow mountains and lakes, and was also intoxicated by the unique and colorful cultural customs. Now, I am about to complete my tenure. I have been fortunate to witness the rapid development of China-Nepal relations in the past four years, participated in the glorious moment of head-of-state diplomacy, and promoted cooperation in various fields between China and Nepal. Every drop of my sweat is soaked in honor and pride.
In the past four years, China and Nepal have maintained close high-level exchanges. The political mutual trust has continuously been consolidated. In 2019, Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, paid a historic state visit to Nepal. In the same year, Bidya Devi Bhandari, President of Nepal, visited China and attended the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. This was the first time that the two heads of state have exchanged visits within a year. The leaders agreed to build the Strategic Partnership of Cooperation Featuring Ever-lasting Friendship for Development and Prosperity, and reached an important consensus on jointly building the Trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network to help Nepal transition from a “land-locked” to a “land-linked” country.
After the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, President Xi Jinping had two phone conversations with President Bhandari to promote the building of a community of health between China and Nepal, and highlighted the spirit of sticking together through thick and thin. In December 2020, President Xi Jinping and President Bhandari exchanged letters to jointly announce the new height of Mount Qomolangma/Sagarmatha at 8848.86 meters. We were pleasantly surprised to find that she has grown taller, which vividly illustrates that the friendship between China and Nepal cannot be limited, but only gets higher. The professional and technical personnel of the two countries worked together to measure Mount Qomolangma/Sagarmatha, which once again showed to the world that we have a common border of peace.
Not long ago, Li Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, visited Nepal. It was the highest-level visit between China and Nepal after the Covid-19 pandemic, which once again showed the great importance China attaches to Nepal. Wang Yi, State Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, visited Nepal twice and exchanged visits with Narayan Khadka, Foreign Minister of Nepal, promoting the development of China-Nepal cooperation in various fields. Wei Fenghe, State Councilor and Defense Minister of China visited Nepal to promote defense cooperation between China and Nepal. Many Nepali leaders attended bilateral and multilateral diplomatic activities held by China in various ways. Political parties, government departments and local-level bodies of the two countries maintain frequent exchanges, with views-exchanging, coordination and cooperation on issues of common concern.
In the past four years, China and Nepal have firmly supported each other and defended common interests. No matter how the international and regional situation changes, we firmly adhere to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, always understand issues involving each other’s core interests and major concerns, and give each other valuable support. China firmly supports Nepal in safeguarding its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, exploring a development path that suits its own national conditions, and improving the lives of the Nepali people and the revitalization of the country. The Nepali side firmly adheres to the one-China policy, upholds justice on issues related to China’s core interests such as Taiwan, Xizang, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and human rights, opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs under any pretext, and reiterates many times that Nepal will never allow any activities that use Nepal’s territory to oppose China and undermine China’s interests. China-Nepal friendship has weathered many tests and became rock solid.