Northern Relations

The book highlights importance of Nepal-China relations

By KESHAB POUDEL

Nepal-China relation is centuries-old as there have been frequent contacts between the scholars from both the countries since long. With the establishment of diplomatic relations between Nepal and China in 1955, the relations between the two countries reached to new heights and they have remained cordial and without any major problem.

With the beginning of modernization process, China has made tremendous progress in economic sector. Being a close neighbor of China , Nepal can seek to obtain many advantages from the economic prosperity and development of China , which shares more than 1400 kilometer long border with Nepal .

Situated between two Asian giants - India in the south and China in the north - Nepal ’s geographical situation is very complex and her foreign policy option is very limited. Although it was propounded by Great King Prithivi Narayan Shaha more than two centuries ago, the foundation of Nepal ’s foreign policy is still valid. King Prithivi Narayan Shaha highlighted the limitation of foreign policy of Nepal in handling two big neighbors. Whether during the time of Prithivi Narayan Shaha or present King Gyanendra, they have similar problems and face similar limitations in handling the foreign relations.

Despite big mountains standing in the border between the two countries, the relations between Nepal and China have been renewed frequently by exchange of visits of high-level officials and leaders. From scholars to religious leaders, the history of people to people contact between the two is also very old. In the complex global scenario, Nepal ’s stability is also vital to the security of Tibet . In this context, Nepal needs to respect the security sensitivity of its northern neighbor.

Following the restoration of democracy in Nepal , the people to people contact between Nepal and China reached into a new phase. Thanks to the efforts of the private sectors and scholars, many books have already been published in Nepal written by Chinese as well as Nepalese scholars.

Till a decade ago, there were hardly any book written by Nepalese highlighting the different aspects of Nepal-China relations. Confined to the higher official levels, a large number of people were unaware about the state of the relations. The situation has changed now as many new books are coming in the market providing glimpses of the bilateral relations.

Recently, the Institute of Foreign Affairs has come up with a new book on Nepal-China Relations. Although it is a compilation of articles written by many scholars, this book helps to understand different aspects of the relations between the two countries.

Nepal-China Relations Editor: Nishchal N. Pandey Published by: Institute of Foreign Affairs Pages: 98 Price: Undisclosed

In the last one month, this is the third book published in Nepal about Nepal-China relations. Following the publication of a book by a Chinese scholar Wang Zong a month ago, Nepal ’s long time China expert Basudev Sharma Tufan also came up with a memoir. Published by Nepal China Study Center , Zong’s book discusses Nepal China relations on the basis of defense strategy.

Sharma’s book reveals many important events on Nepal-China relations from the perspective of an eye-witness. In this series, the new book by the Institute on China-Nepal Relations has also its own importance. The articles in the book mostly highlight Nepal ’s perspective and the compilation of discussions at seminars show the level of discussions that take place in Nepal on this subject.

“While the whole world is engaged in forging cordial relations with this rising power of the 21 st century, it is a heartening fact to be noted that Nepal has always had an extremely close and fruitful relations with our northern neighbor,” writes Nishchal N. Pandey in his preface. “As China gears up to become military and economic superpower, Nepal as a neighbor could learn a lot from the Chinese development endeavors, cash in from Tibet Autonomous Region’s modernization wave and chart out a workable strategy to profit from the vast Chinese market for its exports for tourism growth.”