Any Attempt To Divide China Will End In “Shattered Bones”, China’s Xi Warns 

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned on Sunday that any foreign actors attempting to divide China would be “crushed” as he held Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) discussions in Nepal, reported Reuters.

Locals wait to accord a warm welcome to visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kathmandu, #Nepal on Saturday. Video: Zhao Yipu/People’s Daily pic.twitter.com/X8N9k0Tzp3

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) October 12, 2019

Xi held talks over the weekend with Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, as both countries aimed to strengthen bilateral ties by signing several economic agreements, including new BRI projects, such as the new trans-Himalayan railway line.

Xi said that “anyone attempting to split China in any part of the country will end in crushed bodies and shattered bones,” he told Nepal’s Oli, according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV.

“And any external forces backing such attempts dividing China will be deemed by the Chinese people as pipe-dreaming!” Xi said.

Nepal’s Oli responded to Xi by saying any “anti-China activities” on its soil will be squashed, CCTV reported.

Xi, the first Chinese president to visit the buffer state [Nepal] between India and China in over two decades, is attempting to quickly bring online the BRI segment across the Himalayas, raising concern in India about China’s expanding influence in the region.

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Nepal, Saturday, October 12, on a state visit, making him the first Chinese president to visit the country in 22 years.
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Xi Becomes 1st Chinese President in 2 Decades to Visit Nepal pic.twitter.com/AnyCB8Owf2

— VOA DEEWA (@voadeewa) October 12, 2019

C. Raja Mohan, a foreign affairs analyst, told Reuters that China is expanding BRI projects in Nepal, uncontested because it has a larger economy and military versus India.

“This power imbalance translates into an unpleasant fact on the diplomatic front – that China is under no pressure to please India,” Mohan said.

Oli said Nepal supports the one-China policy, adding that it will never allow separatist demonstrations against China in the country.

Xi also said Beijing welcomes Oli’s support for China and said both countries are real friends and partners.

Both countries added in a joint statement that their friendship is “unbreakable.”

Xi deliberately made his comments with Nepal’s Oli public via Chinese state media as a direct message not just to India, but to the US, to stay out of its affairs in the Eastern Hemisphere.

Beijing has routinely blamed the US and its European allies for supporting Hong Kong protesters.

Protests in Hong Kong have turned violent in the last several months, which has contributed to socio-economic chaos in Hong Kong, which is likely to trigger a recession in the city in the coming quarters.

Xi fears Washington will continue supporting regime-change operations around China, like the ones spiraling out of control in Hong Kong to pressure Beijing’s economy and suppress its rise as the world’s next global superpower.