The New Nation - Internet Edition

Reuters, Beijing/Kathmandu

Nepal's prime minister will visit the Tibetan capital of Lhasa during his upcoming trip to China, as China tries to forge closer ties with its southern neighbour in order to control a restive minority at home.

Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal's six-day trip, beginning Saturday, highlights his administration's strategic balancing act between giant rivals China and India, and his efforts to show domestic opponents he too commands China's support. Beijing in turn seeks more support from the Nepali government in controlling 20,000 Tibetan exiles based in the Himalayan nation. Exile groups in Nepal stepped up protests against Chinese policies in their homeland after widespread Tibetan demonstrations against Chinese rule in March, 2008.

"China has only one obsession in Nepal and that is not to let Nepal be used for free Tibet activities," Kunda Dixit, editor of the Nepali Times weekly, told Reuters.

Tibetan exile groups say the border with Nepal, traditionally a crossing point for Tibetan refugees as well as those simply travelling between Tibet and communities in India, has been more tightly controlled since last year.

In Nepal, former Maoist rebels are demanding the resignation of the government seven months after the former rebels walked out in a row with the president. These groups claim historic inspiration from Mao Zedong, the communist revolutionary founder of the People's Republic of China.