Kathmandu, Oct. 15 -- Nepal's leaders are basking in the glory of the state visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping on 12-13 October. This hangover is going to last till at least after Tihar.
But sooner or later they (and we) will have to face the gritty reality that neither China or India are going to make Nepal. We have to do it ourselves. The most important message of the Xi visit, as Sinologist Bhaskar Koirala argues, is that Nepal should follow China's example of self-reliance.
The Chinese leadership has always been strong on symbolism, keeping a long-term time horizon, building a strategy to attain those goals, and implementing them. This time, too, President Xi timed his state visit to Nepal after an informal summit with Indian Prim...