Nepal and China agreed to promote cooperation in various sectors, including trade, transit, connectivity and investment, in a virtual meeting which also underscored the importance of exchange of high-level visits and stressed the need for timely implementation of the agreements and understandings reached between the two countries, the foreign affairs ministry said. The 14th meeting of the Nepal-China Diplomatic Consultation Mechanism was held virtually Wednesday afternoon, the ministry said in a press release.
Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal and Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wu Jianghao led their respective delegations to the meeting. “On the occasion, the two sides took stock of Nepal-China relations and exchanged views on further promoting bilateral relations and cooperation for mutual benefit,” the release said.
“Both sides, during the meeting, agreed to promote cooperation in various sectors including trade, transit, connectivity, investment, health, tourism, poverty alleviation, disaster management, education, culture, and people-to-people exchanges, among others,” it said.
The two sides also agreed to activate bilateral mechanisms to enhance cooperation and partnership in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. They also emphasised the need for timely completion of China-assisted projects, the release said.
“Both sides underlined the need to enhance the level of support for improving the livelihood of people residing in bordering districts in the Northern Himalayan region of Nepal,” it said. They also exchanged views on continuing cooperation in various regional and multilateral forums on matters of mutual interests, adds the statement.
The Nepali delegation consisted of senior officials of various ministries of the Nepal government and the Charge d’affaires at the Embassy of Nepal in Beijing. The Chinese delegation comprised high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China and the Ambassador of China to Nepal.
