Kathmandu: The Parliamentary Committee on International Relations and Tourism has directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to caution the Chinese Ambassador in Nepal regarding the expression made by the Chinese Ambassador in connection with Nepal-India trade issues.

In a meeting held on Wednesday, the committee had called Foreign Minister NP Saud to seek information on this matter.

Most members of the committee had expressed their objection to the statement made by the Chinese Ambassador, emphasizing the need to caution and alert China about it. At the end of the meeting, Committee Chairman Rajkishor Yadav directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to caution and alert the Chinese Ambassador, stating, ‘Nepal is a sovereign country. Decisions regarding what to do or not to do are internal to Nepal.’ He said, ‘The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should inquire about the negative comments made publicly by the Chinese Ambassador and caution them.’

Foreign Minister Saud responded that he is currently abroad and does not have sufficient information on this matter.

Chinese Ambassador Chen Song had made negative comments about Nepal-India trade relations during an event organized by the Foundation of Trans-Himalayan Research and Studies in Kathmandu last Saturday.

‘In the first month of this fiscal year, in just nine months, imports from India exceeded nine billion rupees. Multiply that by 12. It is not just 10 billion; it is 100 billion. Every year, Nepal imports around a billion rupees’ worth of agricultural products from India,’ he had said, ‘That’s why I suggested to the Nepali government to prioritize the agriculture sector. It is very important. Moreover, your industrial base is not strong. Your production sector has decreased from 14% of GDP to less than 10% now.’

After the controversy escalated on this issue, the committee had summoned the Foreign Minister to seek information.”