KATHMANDU, AUGUST 5

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sewa Lamsal today said that Nepal was closely watching Taiwan situation.

Speaking at press briefing here today, Lamsal said that Nepal always supported one-China policy.

"Both Nepal and China have been supporting each others' sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national independence. Nepal is always in favour of international peace and stability," Lamsal read out from a written statement. The comments of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs came at a time when China conducted military drills around Taiwan after US Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan despite China's opposition.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Narayan Khadka will visit China from August 9-11.

Lamsal said Khadka was going to visit the northern neighbour at the invitation of State Councillor and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi. Wang had extended the invitation to Khadka in March when he visited Nepal.

According to a press release issued by the MoFA, Khadka will hold delegation-level bilateral talks with his Chinese counterparts on August 10 in Qingdao, China. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang will host a banquet in honour of Khadka and the members of the delegation.

Asked to comment on lawmakers' demand that the government should release contents of the letter it wrote to the United States of America about Nepal's decision to withdraw from US State Partnership Programme, Lamsal said that Foreign Minister Khadka had informed the House about it and it would not be appropriate for her to release the contents unilaterally. Contents of sensitive diplomatic dealings cannot be released unilaterally, she added.

A version of this article appears in the print on August 6, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.