Nepal-China sign 18 agreements, 2 MoUs during Jinping's Nepal visit

On Sunday, October 13, Nepal and China signed 18 agreements and two letters of understanding of exchange following the conclusion of the state visit of China's President Xi Jinping to Nepal, as reported by local and Chinese media groups. Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport of Nepal and the Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the feasibility study of China-Nepal Cross-Border Railway project. Another MoU was signed between the Ministry of Finance of Nepal and the China International Development Cooperation Agency on tunnels construction cooperation.

Agreements on strengthening bilateral cooperation in various fields

As per reports, the other agreements focused on strengthening bilateral cooperation in the field of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, railroad connectivity, and investment. A few of them also focused on forging a partnership with the government bodies including the Ministries of Home, Foreign Affairs, Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Agriculture and Livestock Development, Industry, Commerce and Supply, and the Kathmandu metropolis. Earlier in the day, Xi Jinping held bilateral talks with Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

A visit after an interval of nearly 23 years

Xi also promised the construction of Rasuwagadhi-Chhare-Kathmandu tunnel and upgradation of Araniko highway. Jinping arrived in Kathmandu from Chennai late on Saturday afternoon and was received by the Nepali President along with other Ministers and high ranking officials. The visit of China's Head of the State to Nepal comes after an interval of nearly 23 years.
With more engagements planned for Sunday along with the signing of some agreements, the Chinese President is set to fly back to Beijing later in the afternoon. Xi had visited Nepal after concluding his two-day informal summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Tamil Nadu's Mahabalipuram.

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Indo-China informal summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping for the second informal summit after Wuhan at Mamallapuram in Tamil Nadu from October 11. On the first day, both leaders held five hours of discussions apart from exploring the historic seaport. In the meeting, they spoke about issues related to terrorism and radicalization and tried to identify potential areas for investment. The second day was marked by PM Modi’s one-on-one meeting with the Chinese President. This was followed by delegation-level talks where both the PM and Xi Jinping discussed ways to further the India-China relationship. After the latter's departure for the Chennai International Airport, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale briefed the media about the details and outcomes of the informal summit.

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(With ANI inputs)