Nepal Parliamentary Committee to question Foreign Minister over Chinese Envoy's comments

Kathmandu [Nepal], September 6 : The International Relations and Tourism Committee under the House of Representatives of Nepal has summoned Foreign Minister NP Saud for a discussion following a derogatory comment made by the Chinese envoy to Nepal.
The committee has summoned the Foreign Minister for Thursday but the foreign minister is likely to skip the meeting. Chairman International Relations Committee, Rajkishore Yadav confirmed to ANI that tomorrow’s meeting will encompass discussions on the code of conduct for foreign diplomats in Nepal.
 “We have requested the secretariat to call the foreign minister,” Chairman Yadav confirmed to ANI over a phone call. “There are multiple issues to address, including the code of conduct for diplomats.”
Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song has landed into controversy after making derogatory comments against India in a public forum. The Chinese ambassador during an event earlier this week advised Nepal to deal cautiously with India when it comes to trade and other aspects. Song had tried to increase the influence of China while negatively portraying India.
"Unfortunately, you have a neighbour like India, because India is a huge market, huge potential you can tap into. But at the same time, India’s policy towards Nepal and other neighbours are not so friendly and not so beneficial to Nepal," Song said at a programme chaired by House Speaker Devraj Ghimire.
The Chinese ambassador made the comments while holding discussions over Kalyan Rokka’s presentation where he claimed that Nepal continues to bear loss in trade with India.
"Last fiscal year, you (Nepal) exported 10 billion rupees of electricity to India. How much do you import from India? My Nepalese friends, you imported 19 billion Nepalese rupees of electricity from India. You had a deficit in electricity trade, one of the products you are proud of, and you think that will bring you economic independence," the Chinese Ambassador had said.
"I will have more field trips to learn about the reality of Nepal and find more potential cooperation between China and Nepal. Best of all, I think Nepalese people also have the right to enjoy a more rich life, a more modern life, a more prosperous life," he said.
It is the first time that a Chinese ambassador to Nepal has made comments about diplomatic relations with another nation. This move of the Chinese ambassador is being seen as having breached diplomatic etiquette.
The statement of the Chinese Ambassador to Nepal comes at a time after the issuance of the “standard map of China” which prompted the cancellation of the visit of Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Mayor Balen Shah to China.
Mayor Balen who was scheduled to visit China to promote tourism and cultural exchange was cancelled last Thursday, the same day when he was scheduled to fly to China.
Expressing concern, Balen stated that the new Standard map released by China did not respect Nepal’s territorial integrity and Nepal was not consulted prior to its release. As a result, he announced on social media that he would not be proceeding with his planned 5-day trip to China on ethical grounds.