UPDATE - China eyes greater development strategy synergy with Nepal, says President Xi

ADDS DETAILS ON MEETING; CHANGES HEAD, DECK

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) — Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday said his country is willing to strengthen its synergy with Nepal on development strategy.

During his meeting with visiting Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda in the eastern city Hangzhou, Xi praised Prachanda's commitment to promoting friendly ties and support for cooperation in Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.

"This is your first visit to China after your third term as Prime Minister of Nepal, and I am confident that it will yield fruitful results and give new impetus to the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries," the Chinese daily Global Times quoted Xi as telling Prachanda.

"China attaches great importance to China-Nepal relations, and is willing to strengthen its development strategy synergy with Nepal, deepen practical cooperation in various fields, enhance the exchange of experience in governance and promote new progress in China-Nepal relations," he added.

Prachanda arrived in eastern China early on Saturday for a week-long visit at the invitation of his counterpart Li Qiang.

He will attend the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province, according to a statement by China's Foreign Ministry.

Prachanda is also expected to hold a bilateral summit with Premier Li Qiang.

He is accompanied by a high-level delegation including Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud, his daughter Ganga Dahal and other cabinet members, according to a separate statement by the Nepali Foreign Ministry.

"Nepal and China enjoy an excellent state of bilateral relations as good friends, close neighbors and trusted partners," the ministry said, adding the visit would "bolster our age-old bilateral relations and expand the areas of cooperation in various fields of mutual interest."

During his visit on Sept. 23-30, Prachanda will also pay a visit to Chongqing Municipality to observe agriculture and industrial progress in China, as well as to Lhasa, a city in the Tibet Autonomous Region of southwest China, it noted.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid