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NepalRelations with Other South Asian Nations
Pakistan and Bangladesh
Nepal's relations with other South Asian nations were
dominated
by the search for alternate transit facilities and a
reduction of
India's influence. Nepal tried to stay clear of
Indo-Pakistani
rivalry, inasmuch as Nepal had a only minor role in the
Kashmir
dispute and had no involvement in several United
States-sponsored
security arrangements in the region in the early 1950s.
Nepal and Pakistan signed the protocol for establishing
full
diplomatic relations in 1962 and exchanged ambassadors in
1963. Two
agreements between Kathmandu and Karachi (then Pakistan's
capital)
were signed in October 1962, calling for reciprocal
most-favored-
nation treatment. A January 1963 agreement provided Nepal
with free
trade and transit facilities through the port of
Chittagong, East
Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh). This arrangement
somewhat
reduced Nepal's dependence on India for import privileges,
particularly after the establishment of an air link with
East
Pakistan later in the year. This endeavor to secure
another transit
route through East Pakistan had at best only limited
potential
because of the intervening Indian territory.
Nepal initially adopted a neutral posture during the
IndoPakistan war of 1971 but immediately recognized the newly
independent nation of Bangladesh on January 16, 1972. Two
days
after diplomatic relations were established with Dhaka,
Islamabad
broke off diplomatic relations with Kathmandu.
Nepal's focus shifted to Bangladesh as a permanent and
much
desired gateway to the sea. Bangladesh, friendly to India
and close
to Nepal's southern border, opened new potential for both
trade and
transit facilities.
Nepal's relations with Bangladesh improved when an
anti-Indian
faction seized power in Dhaka in August 1975. The turning
point in
Nepal-Bangladesh relations, however, occurred in April
1976 when
the two countries signed four agreements relating to
trade,
transit, civil aviation, and technical cooperation. They
also
jointly issued a communiqué on maintaining close
cooperation in the
fields of power generation and the development of water
resources.
The transit agreement exempted all traffic-in-transit from
transit
duties or other charges. Six points of entry and exit for
the
movement of Nepalese traffic-in-transit through
Bangladesh's ports
and territory were designated. This transit agreement came
at a
crucial time--during Nepal's conclusion of a trade and
transit
agreement with a reluctant India. In 1986 Nepal was also
gratified
when Bangladesh wanted to involve Nepal in the issue of
distribution and utilization of water from the Ganges
River.
Data as of September 1991
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