NEPAL IN BRI AND INDIAN CONCERN

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                                                                  by Baburam Poudyal 
  Nepal has been facing a serious triangular-diplomatic approach of India, China, and the USA this time, especially on Nepal’s participation in BRI. Kathmandu is continually trying to achieve balance-relations among these stakeholders. Nepal’s tilting toward the Chinese BRI might be a headache in the future.

President Bhandari and Xi
The most important and long-awaited protocol of Nepal-China transit and transport agreement find edge after the signing at the Great Hall of peoples of China on April 29, 2019.  The signing event was witnessed by Chinese President Xi Jing Ping and Nepali President Bidhya Devi Bhandari at the venue. The protocol is finally signed after a high-level bilateral talk in Beijing by Nepali foreign minister Pradeep Kumar Gyanwali and Chinese Transport minister li Xiaopeng on behalf of their governments. The wave of happiness is spread among the people of Nepal but some competitive forces of China are seriously watching new development of Nepal-China relation.

            There were only two options to choose 
            Nepal, the first was to obey Delhi and the 
            second was to call China for help, and 
            Nepal chooses the second option.

 President of Nepal, Bidhya Devi Bhandari was invited there in a formal visit around the occasion of the second conference of Belt and Road Initiative forum on 2019 April 25-27. Beijing heartily welcomed the Nepali team under the leadership of President Bhandari. She is the first nominal state leader of the federal republic of Nepal to formally invite by a northern ambitious neighbor. Nepal committed strategic partner of China since 2016 and signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2017.

Himalaya: Let it links the countries
  The relation of China and Nepal is running very smoothly after 1950 when there was not an assumption of Belt n Road Initiative. China has been continually supporting Nepal to found infrastructure and investment. After the last eighth decade China raising the economic and other supports year by year.

 China achieved economic growth and presents a model of development within a short period.  President Xi jumping declares an ambitious international dream project in 2013. The step shows that the dragon country entered the international arena as a rising global economic power. Until 2015 China was the fastest growing economy in the world. Nepal is eager to take benefit from the Chinese development.

           Modi's first visit was most popular in Nepal than 
           of any other Indian Prime minister. It is amazing
           that Modi took a U-turn to impose hard step
           like blocked within the one year on Nepal.
       
On 27 November 1959, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said: “May I just repeat what we have declared that any aggression on Nepal or Bhutan will be considered by us aggression on India”. The statement indicates that India wants to see Nepal as an Indian protectorate kingdom. Nehru corrects his statement later on the reaction of Nepal. After the Indo-China war in 1962, India feels the security threat from the side of China and always doubts the presence of China in Nepal.  Though, Nepal is committed not to misuse its land against neighboring countries. However, there are some problems to solve between the two countries.  Despite this, India played a very important role to support Nepal in various sectors and playing the role of easy supporter. Geography, culture, and people to people relations are major nexus to tie up them mutual and Indo-Nepal border is open.  
 
Indian concern and Compulsions of Nepal
 
 In 2016, just after the disastrous earthquake hit Nepal on 25 April 2015 more than 9000 people were killed, 10803 government’s buildings, about 3 lakhs people’s houses and thousands of archeological shrines were completely destroyed. Just after few months of tragedy On 23 September, 2015 India started to stop the essential supplies to Nepal over months because India raises pressure to curve Nepal because of India wanted some revisions in the new constitution of Nepal as per its interest but Nepal deny the Indian pressure and promulgate the Constitution. This was not only blocked imposed against Nepal by India but the third was this. History denotes whenever Nepal feels own sovereignty India repeatedly using the block as a whip. In the situation, there were only two options to choose Nepal, the first was to obey Delhi and the second was to call China for help, and Nepal chooses the second option.
      
 Newly elected Indian Prime minister Modi in 2014 was in Nepal-friendly mood and his second foreign visit as a prime minister was Nepal on 3 August 2014 after Bhutan. His visit was most popular in Nepal than of any other Indian Prime minister. It is amazing that Modi took a U-turn to impose hard step like blocked within the one year on Nepal.

           Kathmandu should seriously think to take
          a large amount of loan in the light of own 
          management and economic capacity.           

Indian bureaucrats, intellectuals and media always concern about the growing Chinese impact around India but India itself doing trade partnership with China since 1980. Both countries keep holding their serious border dispute aside and made a wise understanding of economic tie.  Up to 2007, China became the largest trade partner of India. The gross trade between China and India was 89.6 billion US dollar in 2017-18. Besides trade, China is investing a remarkable amount of money in different sectors in India. It means India only does not like the presence of China around India to continue its unilateral dominant on neighboring countries. Delhi neither success to build faithful relation with Beijing nor success to keep neighbors own side. It is a controversial position. High-level participation of Nepal in second BRI forum and first-time inclusion of trans-Himalayan railway project in BRIF joint communique assures Nepal’s affiliation in BRI.  India not only has been acting alone in this affair but with a strong ally US since past few decades.

The US Looks Nepal through Indian Eye
 
The United State of America is not a neighboring Nepal but always stands to support the technical and financial sector. Since cold war times, Nepal is regarded as a strategic country for Whitehouse. At that time, USSR allied India and communist China were in secret watch of USA, it was comfortable from Nepal. With the Changing of the time, India and the USA are in an alliance to check the rapidly growing impact of China. Ultimately the US also want to see the strong Indian impact than China in Nepal. The trade between the USA and China is running in dispute now.

Chinese Interest in Nepal
          
China is a cozy neighbor of Nepal because of not any serious problem running between the two countries. Beijing never creates hard intervention of internal issues of Nepal but changing of time; Beijing is seemed slowly forwarding its policy in economic cover. In this footage US and its allies accusing China to dominant other powers in the world. They have trying to convince Kathmandu not to fall in Beijing’s debt trap like Colombo and Islamabad. Nepal  China had a plan within BRI project as Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) corridor but it did not come in effect due to the loathing of India. China wants to enter in South Asia especially in India because India is also a growing and large economy. Likely, China also wants to strategically check US’s economic activities from this region. After the fail of this plan, China became eager to promote the Nepal connection.
       
 However, India geographically or culturally related and one of the biggest economic and logistic supporters since starting period. The tiny Himalayan country should not think to play diplomatic card between two big neighbors. Whatever India thinks, it is a fact that Nepal does not neglect any one neighbor. Kathmandu should seriously think to take a large amount of loan in the light of own management and economic capacity.           

                 

टिप्पणियाँ

एक टिप्पणी भेजें

Thank you.

इस ब्लॉग से लोकप्रिय पोस्ट

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चित्र
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