Execution Of Strategic BRI Projects

Traditionally, Sino-Nepal indivisible geographic and social kinship is characterised as ties forged by mountains and rivers and Himalayan high land traders. This kinship enjoys people's natural neighbourly love and goodwill. In the BRICS Kazan Summit speech, Chinese President Xi Jinping had quoted a Chinese saying, "A gentleman does things, and he who is right benefits." 

In the first phase of our modern diplomatic ties (1955-1980), we had also gentlemen on both sides. The first solid step on the on-going conversation about "Sino-Nepal cooperation and connectivity" then was taken to build the link road between Kathmandu and Zhangmu (in Nyalam county of Tibet Autonomous Region of China) - the first modern cross-border road link between two countries. The construction work was completed in a period which was marked by a warlike condition induced by the West and East in the trans-Himalayas. 

Joint venture model 

During his visit to Nepal in 1978, paramount leader Deng Xiaoping Deng proposed a joint venture model of development between Nepal and China. Nepal was not able to agree on this gentle proposal. Nepal was much adversely impacted by 1971 dismemberment of Pakistan and 1975 drastic change in the status of Sikkim. Since, Nepal continues to be affected by political and policy stability. King Birendra's proposal to declare Nepal a Zone of Peace with multilateral neutrality was followed by economic blockades. As a matter of fact, 116 nations including four permanent members of the Security Council had endorsed Nepal's Zone of Peace proposal. 

Despite this geopolitical context of decades earlier, the signing of "Framework for Belt and Road Cooperation" between Nepal and China on December 4 last year has infused a modern development vision and a sense of cooperative direction to our Trans-Himalayan ties. As a matter of fact, Nepal precisely figures in One Belt and One Road vision and action document jointly made public by National Commission of Reform and Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Commerce on 28 March, 2015, which aims to promote "the border trade and tourism and culture cooperation" with Tibet Autonomous Region.  Nepal and China receive a trade-off by utilising their regional comparative advantage in development and connectivity. This is what their strategic partnership of cooperation intends to achieve too. 

BRI evolution in the last several years has increasingly shown a trend where regional countries and China are in a development and connectivity continuum. One may recall that not long ago Tibet was officially designated as China's frontier region for the BRI Nepal contact.  Similarly, Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China features as the pivot of China’s global BRI vision in the Central and West Asia, as well as the European markets, through the land. China plans to more judiciously use its each provincial geographic position strategically so to harvest most comparative advantage from development, investment and innovative green technology based on the BRI framework.  

Nepali people have noted that it took a decade for Nepal to sign the BRI agreement. President Xi had made public China's BRI proposal as earlier as 2013. The BRI Agreement has appreciably included projects in cross-border transport and energy transmission sectors which are of strategic importance and will be the game changer for the native people and the state on both sides. These projects, if implemented with due diligence, shall promote Nepal's independent economic and trade development that is legitimately integrated with China and the world at large. 

How Nepal would manage the gaps and geopolitical challenges on the way of economic and trade integration with China? Nepal should be ever effortful to leverage its trans-Himalayan resources and geography with China. The founding of PRC in 1949 has been a ground-breaking development for Nepal as the new China stands for Nepal's independence. 

Nepal should never dilute and mix up its bilateral relation with China with any other bilateral diplomatic ties. Its each bilateral neighbourly relation holds own characteristics. Nepal's independent strength lies in its own credible neutrality. The un-delineated tri-lateral border point among China, Nepal and India in the middle sector is a matter left unaddressed by a history which had i) lack of formal diplomatic ties between Nepal and China, ii) China-India early 1950s bonhomie and iii) a war in southern Himalayan border line.   

Effective implementation 

Nepal should take special care not to allow its territory to be used against any friendly country as Nepal itself is much vulnerable to its unregulated southern border. Nepal should honestly and efficiently cooperate with China to steadily implement the projects of strategic importance identified in the BRI agreement and it should be ever vigilant to safeguard the continuity, integrity and credibility of the state policy. 

Developments during the days of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's visit to China have shown that both sides see an urgency in the signing of the BRI cooperation agreement. Now the urgency in efficient and fair implementation of the strategic projects listed in it is the requirement. These projects "consolidates popular support for our bilateral friendship." It has a glorious objective, Ding Xuexiang, the first vice-premier of China, shared the objective with a visiting Nepali official delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Bishnu Paudel in September 2024.  

(The author is founding Secretary General of China Study Centre Nepal.)