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Nepal’s relationship with China dates back to the middle of the seventh century, when Nepal’s armed forays into Tibet led to Chinese intervention. In 1791, Nepal invaded Tibet again, but this resulted in a victory of the Ch’ing over Nepal in 1792. It resulted in the signing of the Sino-Nepalese Treaty of 1792, which provided a tribute-bearing mission from Nepal to China every five years as a symbol of China’s political and economic supremacy in the region thereby forcing the Nepalese to send diplomatic missions with gifts to the Manchu Emperor every five years. The Chinese used to address the King of Nepal with the title of “Wang” considering him a vassal of the Chinese Empire. China’s main interest in Nepal has always been led by its concerns over Tibet, which China has ruled since 1950. The strategic location of Nepal between India and China lends itself to the fact that the influence on Nepal is especially important for control of Tibet. Mao had said that “Tibet was the palm of a hand and its fingers were Ladakh, Sikkim, Nepal, Bhutan, and the North-East Frontier Agency, now the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh”.
The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, inaugurated the congress with a three-hour-and-20-minute opening speech. His message was clear: a confident China is coming back to claim its rightful place of the world and find back the past glory of Chinese civilisation. President, Xi appears to be all set to achieve his global ambition and in Nepal particularly from influence he wants to control and make it their satellite.
Towards this grand ambition President Xi Jinping put forward his dream project the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for international cooperation in 2013. Since then, a total of 172 countries and international organizations have signed over 200 cooperation agreements with China and that cumulative trade between China and its BRI partners has exceeded $9.2 trillion. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is also the part of this BRI their flagship program. CPEC is a $62 billion package of projects ranging from transportation, energy, port construction, industrial cooperation, and even social sector development. It has been estimated that besides creating two million new employment opportunities, Pakistan would benefit with at least two percent increase in its GDP per annum! This would also enhance a wider regional connectivity to Afghanistan and Central Asia.
China aware of the geographical and cultural proximity between India and Nepal has been focusing on ending India’s influence over Nepal and it’s over dependence on India. Systematic methodology adopted:
Chinese ambassador to Nepal, Hou Yanqi’s popularity is soaring in Nepal and she has become successful in “charming” them. Jyoti Malhotra’s opinion piece in The Print reads, “Hou Yanqi’s soaring popularity is the talk of town these days. A key part of her job, of course, is to wean Nepal away from its civilisational embrace of India and offer the charms of Beijing, instead of the all-too-familiar tramping grounds like Delhi and Banaras. By all accounts, she is succeeding rather well.”
Nepalhas always looked at either China or India, given its delicate land-locked position between the two. Nepal’s only aim is to extract maximum benefit from her neighbour’s on both sides. Maintaining a balancing relationship with China remains Nepal’s key and critical component of its foreign policy.On the other hand, India and Nepal share a deep and enduring relationship cemented by shared history, cultureandreligion. As China marches in, it severely restricts the clout India once enjoyed. However, of all the peripheral countries, the geo-strategic location of Nepal gives it particular importance since it is located between two unfriendly neighbours. There is little doubt that India has lost strategic space to China in Nepal. Some reckon the era of ‘special relations between India and Nepal is nearly over as China makes steady inroads into every aspect of Nepalese life. There has been a truly spectacular rise in Chinese influence and a corresponding fall in Indian hold and influence on Nepal. China is succeeding in its design to restrict Indian influence and enhance its control over Nepal. Every Indian wishes Nepal and the Nepalese people well and we take pride in our Hindu neighbour, the land of proud Gurkhas. It is also interesting to note that this landlocked nation in our neighbourhood is the only nation to have never been colonized by British or conquered by any outsider. Hope Nepal follows its traditional policies and do not fall in the Chinese trap like Sri Lanka.
China in Nepal: Another proxy war with India? By Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan
Patial RC is a retired Infantry officer of the Indian Army and possesses unique experience of serving in active CI Ops across the country and in Sri Lanka. Patial RC is a regular writer on military and travel matters in military professional journals. The veteran is a keen mountaineer and a trekker.
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