中国-尼泊尔铁路谈判取得进展
文｜阿努伊·库马尔（Anuj Kumar Adhikari） 加德满都邮报编辑（The kathmandu Post) 翻译｜齐晓彤
导读：
中方准备在2020年前实现通往吉隆县铁路的完工，尼泊尔方面也同样想要与北方近邻建立铁路互联互通
中国-尼泊尔铁路项目备受关注，一项可行性研究表明，拟议中的铁路线将耗资约27.5亿美元。这项研究是由中国铁路第一勘察设计院开展的。
这项从5月底就开始进行的研究表明，从西藏的吉隆县延伸至尼泊尔加德满都市的铁路轨道总长72.25公里，其中98.55%的路段上需要修建隧道和桥梁。可行性研究表明，完成这个项目预计需要9年时间。
尼泊尔基础设施与交通部向当地媒体告知，铁路始于吉隆县，横穿与中国领土接壤的郎唐地区进入西藏，最后到达加德满都。
技术报告指出，需沿通往吉隆佩估湖的斜坡修建坡道，将铁轨接到加德满都区域，以解决喜马拉雅山脉南部和北部山脚之间巨大的海拔差所造成的通行困难。
由于严峻的地形挑战，连接尼泊尔与中国的铁路将以低于每小时100公里的速度行驶。
8月中旬，尼泊尔高级政府官员代表团受邀来到中国就可行性报告中的技术层面进行了讨论。据悉，两方在项目的技术层面已达成一致。
中国11月前将派出代表团访问尼泊尔，启动详细铁路项目报告的准备工作。据了解，单是报告的准备工作就可能需要两年以上的时间。
与此同时，尼泊尔和中国尚未就该项目的财务模式进行讨论，该问题可能会在下次会议上得到确认。
2014年8月，中国将青藏高海拔地区铁路延伸至西藏第二大城市日喀则。这条铁路被视为一个工程奇迹，也是中国有史以来建造的最昂贵的铁路之一，因其途经地区地势崎岖险恶，修建桥梁和隧道便十分必要了。
目前，北京政府正在努力将拉萨-日喀则铁路延伸至吉隆县，吉隆县距尼泊尔的拉苏瓦区25公里。中方准备在2020年前实现通往吉隆县铁路的完工，尼泊尔方面也同样想要与北方近邻建立铁路互联互通。
去年4月，中国外长王毅在在北京会见尼泊尔外长贾瓦利，席间透露了“跨喜马拉雅立体化互联互通网络”的概念。观察人士认为，中尼铁路的修建或许是实现这一概念的第一步，而“中尼印经济走廊”的概念可能在不久的将来成为现实。
去年6月尼泊尔总理卡·普·夏尔马·奥利对中国进行国事访问，签署了一份有关建设尼中铁路连接的谅解备忘录。访问期间，习近平主席向尼泊尔总理保证，火车将从日喀则通往加德满都。
中尼两国彼此毗邻，尼泊尔总理访华期间，两国同意在在跨喜马拉雅立体化互联互通网络的大框架范围内，加快“一带一路”倡议下有关互联互通，港口、公路、铁路、航空和通信建设等领域的合作。
中国进口商品占尼泊尔总进口量的13%，而出口到中国的商品占其出口总额的3.5%。 随着铁路工程的进行，尼泊尔期待两国在贸易额、互联互通程度和旅游人次方面的大幅跃升。
同样在9月初，加德满都和北京签署了一项过境协议，尼泊尔获准使用中国港口与中国或第三国进行贸易。2016年，印度对尼泊尔进行了长达数月的封锁后不久，尼泊尔总理奥利访华，两国签署了《中华人民共和国政府和尼泊尔政府过境运输协定》。这一协议的签订标志着尼泊尔在进行第三国贸易时对印度的长期依赖结束了。
根据9月初尼泊尔与中国官员在加德满都达成的协议，尼泊尔获准使用4个中国港口、3个陆地港口用于第三国进口，并通过尼泊尔和中国之间的6个专用中转点进行出口。中国同意让尼泊尔使用天津、深圳、连云港和湛江海港，兰州、拉萨和日喀则的旱地港口与第三国进行贸易。
过境协议将在中国对尼泊尔进行高层访问期间正式签署，具体日期与细节尚未最终确定。（编辑：杨海霞）
China, Nepal agree on technical aspects of railway
Anuj Kumar Adhikari, Editor of The kathmandu Post
A pre-feasibility study on the much touted China-Nepal railway line states that the proposed railway line would cost around 2.75 billion US dollars. The study was conducted by China Railway First Survey and Design Institute.
According to the study that began at the end of May, the railway track extending from Kyirong/ Gyirong of Tibet to Kathmandu of Nepal will be 72.25-kilometers, of which 98.55 percent section will be covered by tunnels and bridges. The pre-feasibility study estimates that it would take nine years to complete the project.
Nepal’s Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Management informed the local media that the railway line from Kerung will pass through the Langtang region bordering the Chinese territory, into Tibet and then to Kathmandu.
The technical report states that the ramps have to be constructed along the slopes leading to Lake Paiku at Kyirong to connect the tracks to the Kathmandu section in order to overcome the huge difference in elevation between the southern and northern toes of the Himalayan Mountains.
The speed of rail connecting Nepal with China will be set at less than 100km per hour due to the severe topographical difficulty.
China had invited a team of high ranking government officials from Nepal to discuss on the technical aspects of the pre-feasibility report in Xi’an city, a starting point of Silk Road in northwest China, in mid-August. Both the sides are learnt to have agreed on the technical aspects of the project.
A Chinese team is expected to visit Nepal before November to initiate process on preparing the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the railway. Preparation of the DPR itself could take more than two years, it is learnt.
Meanwhile, Nepal and China are yet to discuss on the financial modality of the project, which is likely to be ascertained in next meeting.
China had extended its high elevation Qinghai-Tibet Railway up to Shigatse, the second largest Tibetan city, in August, 2014. The railway track is considered an engineering marvel and is the one of the most expensive railways ever built in China, because of the harsh terrain it traverses, making it necessary to build numerous bridges and tunnels.
Currently, the Beijing government is working to extend the Lhasa-Shigatse railway route up to Kyirong, which lies at a distance of 25 km from Nepal’s Rasuwa district. With China ready to complete the railway tracks to Kyirong by 2020, Nepal has been mulling over to initiate railway connectivity with its northern neighbor.
As Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had divulged on the concept of ‘trans-Himalayan Multidimensional Connectivity Network’ during a meeting with his Nepali counterpart Pradeep Gyawali in Beijing last April, observers believe that the China-Nepal railway could be a first step in this process and the concept of “China-Nepal-India Economic Corridor” could be materialized in near future.
A memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed to build the railway link between Nepal and China during Nepali Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's state visit to China last June. During the visit, President Xi Jinping had assured Nepali Prime Minister that the train from Shigatse will arrive in Kathmandu.
During the visit, the two neighbouring countries had also agreed to expedite cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on sectors pertaining to connectivity, development of ports, roads, railways, aviation and communications within the overarching framework of trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity Network.
Nepal imports 13 percent of its goods from China while its export to China stands at 3.5 percent of its total exports. Nepal expects a substantial rise in trade, connectivity and tourism with China with the construction of the railway line.
Similarly in early September, Kathmandu and Beijing finalised a transit protocol that will give Nepal access to Chinese ports for trade with China and third countries. The framework treaty on Transit and Transportation Agreement was signed between the two countries when PM Oli visited China in 2016, shortly after months-long Indian blockade to Nepal. With this agreement, Nepal’s long dependence on India for third-country trading has ended.
According to the agreement between Nepal and Chinese officials in Kathmandu in early September, Nepal will be allowed to use four Chinese seaports, three land ports for third country import, and export through the six dedicated transit points between Nepal and China. China has agreed to let Nepal use Tianjin, Shenzhen, Lianyungang and Zhanjiang seaports and Lanzhou, Lhasa and Xigatse dry ports for trading with third countries.
The agreement on transit will be formally signed during a high-level visit from China to Nepal, the date or details of which have not be finalized yet.
