Interview: Hangzhou Asian Games reflect Asian fraternity, prosperity, says Nepali PM

KATHMANDU, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Hangzhou Asian Games embody Asian fraternity, unity, peace and prosperity, and the official song "conveys the true sense of reunion and fraternity," said Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

"While Asia is rising, we must uphold Asian unity, we must connect our people heart to heart for the shared and sustained prosperity," the prime minister told Xinhua in a recent interview before his official visit to China, during which he will attend the opening ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Games.

He lauded the slogan of "Heart to Heart, @Future," under which the 19th Asian Games will kick off on Sept. 23 in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The slogan reflects "not only the ability of the digital age to connect people from all over Asia," but also "the core of Asian values and Asian fraternity," he said.

"My expectation and my imagination is that the Asian Games will create a very positive and conducive atmosphere for our unity of Asian people," he added.

"We have to play a more positive role for stability and prosperity not only in Asia, but also all over the world," Dahal stressed.

The prime minister saw off a total of 253 Nepali players, who will contest 29 games in Hangzhou, at his official residence in Kathmandu on Sept. 14.

He felt hopeful that they will "do very well" since Nepal and China share "close cultural affinity" and people-to-people contact for millennia.

Nepal and China signed a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in May 2017, when Dahal was in his second term as the country's prime minister.

The visit to Nepal by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2019 provided "an important opportunity" to move forward cooperation in different areas, including under the BRI, Dahal said.

"Given the huge need for investment in the infrastructure sector, Nepal hopes that there will be a window of opportunity for building infrastructure and promoting connectivity for economic benefit of our people," he added.

He voiced the hope that his upcoming visit will create a "more solid base" to strengthen bilateral friendship and cooperation, and build a "newer level" of trust between the two countries.