Kathmandu, August 27: Zhang Maoming, Chinese ambassador, spoke to NTV World on the massive flash flood in Rasuwa on Wednesday, August 26.
The ambassador said, “First of all, I would like to underline that the Chinese side is deeply saddened by this very unfortunate natural disaster. We extend our deepest condolences to those who lost their lives and our sincere sympathies to the bereaved families, as well as to the Government and people of Nepal. We stand strong with Nepal at this difficult time. China will continue to closely monitor the developments and do its utmost to provide all possible support and assistance. We have been working closely with the Nepali side and supporting each other in responding to the disaster. I’m sure by joining hands together, we will overcome the difficulties, and rebuild our beautiful homes.”
“Based on preliminary information currently available, an earthquake occurred on the Nepali side this morning, triggering an ice avalanche and subsequently mudslides, which caused significant casualties and left people missing on both the Nepali and Chinese sides of the Gyirong-Rasuwagadhi border region.”
“Chinese President Xi Jinping has attached great importance to the disaster and issued important instructions, emphasizing that the top priority is to make every effort to search for and rescue missing persons, relocate and provide shelter for people at risk, promptly treat the injured, and minimize casualties to the greatest extent possible. President Xi stressed the need to strengthen monitoring and early warning, ensure science-based rescue efforts, and prevent secondary disasters.
Following the disaster, the Chinese Embassy in Nepal immediately activated its emergency response mechanism, assessed the situation of Chinese citizens and enterprises in the affected areas in Nepal, and requested the Nepali government and relevant authorities to make every effort to carry out rescue operations. The Chinese Embassy also promptly dispatched a working team to the affected area to coordinate and facilitate rescue efforts on the ground. Despite suffering significant losses on the Chinese side of the border, the Chinese side has immediately started coordination for providing emergency supplies and cash aid to Nepal.”
“At present, Zhang Guoqing, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council of China, is leading officials from relevant ministries to Xizang to guide rescue and response efforts. Relevant Chinese authorities, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Water Resources, China Meteorological Administration, Ministry of Emergency Management and the Xizang Autonomous Region authorities, have established coordination mechanisms with their Nepali counterparts and are strengthening coordination on disaster assessment, search and rescue, and follow-up response, while expediting the formulation of rescue plans.”
“I would also like to take this opportunity to commend the strong response and effective efforts led by the Nepali government and relevant authorities, as well as the resilience and tremendous efforts made by the Nepali people.”
“Both Nepal and China can learn a lot from responding to this disaster. It is imperative for China and Nepal to further strengthen cooperation in disaster prevention, mitigation and emergency management, and continuously enhance our capacity to respond to natural disasters. At least three things can be done.”
“First, our two sides can strengthen information sharing, monitoring and early warning in areas such as meteorology, hydrology and geological disasters, improve mechanisms for sharing information on cross-border disasters, and strive to achieve early detection, early warning and early response.
Second, our two sides can strengthen communication, coordination and institutional development in emergency rescue, and further improve mechanisms for coordinated response and rescue cooperation in the event of sudden disasters.
Third, our two sides can strengthen personnel training, technical exchanges and emergency supplies support, and enhance disaster prevention, mitigation and emergency response capabilities at the local level too.”
“Nepal and China are close neighbours connected by mountains and rivers. The two countries have enjoyed traditional friendship and cooperation. China stands ready to continue providing support and assistance to the best of its ability, as needed by Nepal, to jointly enhance our two countries’ capacity to respond to natural disasters and better protect the lives and property of the people of Nepal and China,” the ambassador remarked.
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