China ready to continue support for Nepal on COVID-19 fight

BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- China stands ready to continue to provide support to Nepal in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Nepali counterpart, Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, in a phone conversation on Monday.

Noting that China and Nepal are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers, Wang recalled that not long ago, Nepali President Bidhya Devi Bhandari sent a message of sympathy to Chinese President Xi Jinping over China's national mourning activities for COVID-19 victims, and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli also offered support to China via his official Twitter account.

China is grateful for such moves, which fully demonstrate the friendship between China and Nepal across the Himalayas, Wang said.

China's epidemic control measures have achieved remarkable results, which not only safeguarded the health and safety of the Chinese people, but also bought time and accumulated experience for other countries to cope with the epidemic, Wang said.

Currently, China faces the risks and challenges of imported infections and a possible rebound in indigenous cases, Wang said, adding that guided by the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China is doing its best to overcome the difficulties and continue to offer assistance to countries in need, especially friendly neighboring countries.

Since the onset of the outbreak, the Nepali government has taken decisive measures based on its national conditions to curb the spread of the epidemic in the country and made utmost efforts to protect the health and safety of its people, representing the initial aspiration and mission of the Communist Party of Nepal as the ruling party, Wang said.

With the rapid spread of the epidemic in South Asia, Nepal is still under considerable pressure, Wang said, adding that China stands ready to continue to offer help to Nepal through government channels and provide necessary assistance to the country in purchasing anti-epidemic supplies from China.

For his part, Gyawali said Nepal congratulates China on successfully containing the spread of the epidemic and achieving important results in fighting the virus under Xi's strong leadership.

Nepal highly appreciates China's timely support for countries in need, active implementation of international cooperation against the epidemic, and positive role in promoting the success of the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit, Gyawali said.

China's endeavors and achievements set an example for the world, he said, expressing confidence that under China's guidance, the international community will eventually prevail over the epidemic.

Gyawali thanked the Chinese government for providing anti-epidemic supplies, and Chinese enterprises and civil groups for their generous support and help, saying he hopes that Nepal will work with China in solidary to jointly win the battle against the epidemic.