CDS Bipin Rawat
Key points
- ‘India’s goodwill comes unconditionally’
- ‘Nepal is free to act independently in international affairs’
- ‘Nepal must be vigilant and learn from Sri Lanka and other nations that have also signed agreements with other countries in the region’
New Delhi: India’s goodwill comes unconditionally, CDS Bipin Rawat said, warning Nepal to be wary of China.
Speaking at an event, CDS Rawat said that Nepal is free to act independently in international affairs, but must be vigilant and learn from Sri Lanka and other nations that have also signed agreements with other countries in the region.
This statement by the CDS comes after three consecutive high-level visits from New Delhi to Kathmandu in the past two months.
Nepal must be vigilant, learn from Sri Lanka: CDS
The Chief of the Indian Army, General Manoj Mukund Naravane, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and the Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Samant Kumar Goel had visited the Himalayan nation in the past two months.
From Nepal, Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali will embark on a trip to India this month.
The great game between the dragon and the elephant for strategic influence in the Himalayas has escalated with both sides trying to woo the landlocked nation.
Concerned about China’s expansion of its military and economic might through the multi-billion dollar infrastructure project under the Belt and Road Initiative in its backyard, India is also strengthening the link not only with Nepal but also with Bhutan and Bangladesh in the framework of Bangladesh-Bhutan-India Nepal (BBIN Initiative).
China’s debt trap diplomacy
Earlier this month, Nepal agreed to speed up a rail connection from its capital Kathmandu to the Indian mainland. China is making a similar effort to link the Nepalese capital with Tibet.
In 2017, the government led by Maithripala Sirisena handed over the port of Hambantota to a state-owned Chinese company in 2017 for a 99-year lease. This transfer was part of a debt swap for a total of USD 1.2 billion.
Recently, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa rejected reports that China had lured Sri Lanka into a “debt trap” after Beijing financed the strategic port of Hambantota in the south.
