Kathmandu- Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian has said that the new height of Mount Sagarmatha, or Mount Qomolangma as known in China, symbolizes the new height of China-Nepal cooperation.
Responding to a question from a journalist of CCTV during a press meet held on Wednesday, he said that the news of the new height of Mount Sagarmatha has brought hopes for the world plagued by COVID-19.
“The new height of Mt. Qomolangma stands as a new milestone for China-Nepal friendship. This year marks the 65th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries,” he said.
The comment from the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson comes a day after Nepal and China jointly announced the revised height of the world’s highest mountain Mount Sagarmatha, popularly known as Mount Everest in the world.
“As the Nepalese side noted, our friendly relationship will develop to be as pure as snow and as majestic as the Himalayas,” he said.
“The confirmation of the rock height of Mt. Qomolangma is a result of the collaboration and hard work of the teams on both sides over the past year against all odds. I give thumbs-up to them. The Chinese side stands ready to continue working with the Nepalese side to advance cooperation on ecological and environmental protection and scientific research of the mountain and safeguard this precious asset and homeland shared by the two peoples,” he said.
A new height 8848.86 meters of Mount Sagarmatha, or Mount Everest, was jointly announced by Nepal and China from Kathmandu and Beijing at a special ceremony on Tuesday.
It was during the state visit of the President of China to Nepal in October 2019 that both the Governments of Nepal and China had agreed on the joint announcement of the height of Mount Sagarmatha.
“No matter how high Mt. Qomolangma is, it can be climbed. No matter how great the difficulty is, it can be overcome. COVID-19 is still wreaking havoc around the world. As long as countries work together in good faith as China and Nepal do, we will finally defeat the virus,” added Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao.
