After India, Nepal turns to China as FM Khanal begins four-day visit

Nepal Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal arrived in China on Sunday for a four-day visit aimed at engaging with the Chinese leadership and outlining the foreign policy priorities of Nepal's new government.

The visit comes just a week after Khanal travelled to India, his first official trip since the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP)-led government took office in March.

The back-to-back visits to Nepal's two largest neighbours are being closely watched as Kathmandu seeks to define its diplomatic approach under the new government.

During his stay in Beijing, Khanal is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and meet other senior Chinese leaders. The discussions are expected to focus on political ties, economic cooperation, investment and regional issues.

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First major China outreach by new government

Khanal's visit is regarded as significant because it will be the first high-level opportunity for the RSP government to present its China policy directly to Beijing.

The RSP came to power following a sweeping electoral victory after Gen-Z-led protests contributed to the fall of the government headed by former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

The election result also ended more than a decade of dominance by Nepal's two major communist parties — the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) led by Oli and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) headed by Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.

Since the abolition of the monarchy in 2008, both communist leaders had advocated closer political and economic engagement with China and played a major role in expanding Beijing's influence in Nepal, including through projects linked to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Beijing seeks stronger cooperation

Ahead of the visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said that Beijing attached great importance to relations with Nepal and looked forward to working with the new government.

According to PTI, he said that China hoped to strengthen political trust, deepen practical cooperation and advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation while promoting the China-Nepal strategic partnership.

Meanwhile, Khanal said that one of the objectives of his visit was to address misconceptions about the foreign policy orientation of the new government.

“My visit is focused on dispelling such narratives, building trust and confidence, and discussing the priorities of the new government so we can make tangible progress in different sectors,” he told Nepal's Kathmandu Post before departing for Beijing.

Visit follows high-profile India engagement

The China visit follows Khanal's trip to New Delhi from June 5 to 7, during which he held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

After the meeting, Khanal said Nepal accords the “highest priority” to its relationship with India and was ready to engage with New Delhi in a substantive and purposeful manner.

The outreach to India had begun even before Khanal's visit. RSP president Rabi Lamichhane travelled to India earlier this month at the invitation of BJP president Nitin Nabin and also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Besides official meetings, Khanal is expected to participate in an investment conference organised by the Nepalese Embassy in Beijing, interact with Chinese business leaders and promote investment opportunities in Nepal.

The visit is likely to offer an early indication of how Nepal's new leadership intends to balance its relations with both India and China while pursuing its economic and strategic interests.