Maoist Center leader and MP elected from Sindhupalchwok Agni Prasad Sapkota said that Chinese authorities are looking at the prospect of opening both Rasuwagadi and Tatopani. “As per my conversation with Chinese authorities, they are keen to resume the Tatopani border but they have some national security concerns,” said Sapkota.
China has proposed to set up offices of joint security forces and jointly patrol the Nepal-China border to check movement of Tibetan refugees and criminal activities according to a media report.
The Chinese side floated the proposal in a meeting with the Nepalese side on December 22 during a border meeting in Khasa, Tibet. The Nepali delegation was led by Asman Tamang, Sindhupalchowk chief district officer.
However, CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli and CPN Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal are in dilemma over a Joint Command Mechanism proposal floated by the Chinese government.
Sources said Oli and Dahal could accept the Chinese proposal only if the Chinese side agreed to modify it through diplomatic channel.
“There are some sensitive issues involved in this proposal, so we want the Chinese side to modify it,” a source said.
CPN-MC leader Agni Sapkota informed Oli and Dahal about the Chinese proposal to set up joint security mechanism on the northern border.
CDO Tamang forwarded the Chinese proposal to Home Secretary Mohan Krishna Sapkota and Nepal’s Ambassador to China Lilamani Poudyal. According to Tamang, the Chinese authority who led the meeting in Khasa has been sending repeated reminders to him about the proposal.
According to a report published in The Himalayan Times, the next border meeting is scheduled for February.
The Chinese authorities have told Nepali leaders that the sloping land of Khasa became fragile after the 2015 earthquake, and therefore, they wanted to send a geographical survey team to the area.
According to Sapkota, Chinese authorities feel Araniko Highway is much better than the Rasuwagadi road. The Chinese technical team has been working on expansion of Araniko Highway, said Sapkota.