CHINA TO NEPAL: MAINTAIN GOOD TIES WITH INDIA

KATHMANDU:Chinese President Xi Jinping suggested to visiting Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda“to maintain good relations between Nepal and India during a meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday.

Prachanda held talks with Xi and other senior Chinese leaders on a wide range of issues, including Nepal‘s relations with China and India, extending a Chinese rail link to Nepal and beyond and opening up more trade routes with China.

After the delegation level talks between the two leaders, the Nepalese media quoted Prachanda as saying, “At the end of our conversation, the Chinese president told us that Nepal should maintain good relations with India.”

However, this is not the first time Chinese leaders have called on Nepalese leaders to maintain good relations with India due to proximity, the open border and close cultural, religious and social ties. It is widely believed in Kathmandu that India played a role in ousting the pro-China government led by former premier K P Sharma Oli in August last year and installing the Prachanda-led regime that is comparatively softer on New Delhi.