China imposes 'undeclared blockade' against Nepal
Categories: FOREIGN COUNTRIES
China's imposition of 'undeclared blockade' against Nepal has severely disrupted traffic of consumer items across the border between the two countries. This is resulting in loss of millions of rupees. China is attempting to tighten its grip on Rasuwagadhi and Tatopani, the two most crucial trading points.China is using the pretext of Covid prevention and only allowing two to three truckloads of goods each day from the trading points into Nepal. “Since two years the trading with China has come down drastically. After the 2015 earthquake, Tatopani was shut down for almost four years, and later when it was opened, the border once was again shut down by Chinese authorities citing COVID which slowed down the trading," says Ashok Shreshtha President of the Nepal Trans Himalayan Border Commerce Association.He added that China should make arrangements for easy import and export of goods from the border. “The Chinese side opened one-way cargo transportation to Nepal by overcoming great difficulties and has continuously enhanced the ports' cargo handling capacity, which played an important role in ensuring the supply of anti-pandemic and livelihood materials in Nepal. We look forward to working with the Nepali side to overcome the present difficulties and make efforts to restore the economy and normal personnel exchanges.” Chinese Embassy in Nepal said in this statement on Jan 13, 2022. Recently, Dahal held an hour-long hush-hush virtual meeting last week with Song Tao, the high-ranking head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC).Chinese leader Song Tao said China wants to deepen traditional ties with Nepal's political parties based on mutual political trust.It appears that China is hina is being heavy-handed in dealing with Nepal and enforcing an undeclared blockade because the present coalition headed by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba is perceived as being 'pro-India' and 'pro-West'.