The issue of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who is going to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, to participate in China's 80th victory celebration against Japan, has raised questions in Nepal's diplomatic field.

Prime Minister Oli is going to China on Saturday to participate in the SCO conference to be held in Tianjin, China on August 15-16. After the SCO conference, he will participate in the victory ceremony. In the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is mentioned that Prime Minister Oli will participate in the anniversary of the victory of "Chinese people's war against Japanese aggression and world anti-fascist war".

Japan attacked China in the early 1930s. The Axis alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan emerged as a dangerous alliance in World War II. But the Axis group was defeated by the Allied coalition including America, Soviet Union, Britain and France. 

Japan left China in 1945 after being defeated by China's strong resistance and America's fierce attack. China has been holding a special event on September 3 to commemorate the victory over Japan. Prime Minister Oli will attend the grand exhibition at Tiananmen Square in Beijing and observe the parade. 

The participation of the Prime Minister of Nepal in a military parade against a friendly country is short-sighted and inconsistent diplomacy. - Geja Sharma Wagle,  International affairs expert According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, leaders of 26 countries, including the Prime Minister of Nepal, will observe it. Prime Minister Oli will be present at the military parade along with Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong. 

Leaders of Russia, North Korea, Pakistan, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan are participating in the program organized by China in Beijing. So are Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, Cuba, Myanmar, Maldives, Zimbabwe, Serbia, Slovakia and Congo. Nepal is also in that list. 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will participate in the SCO conference, is not on that list. Before going to China, Modi is visiting Japan. He is reaching the Chinese city of Tianjin from Japan. He is scheduled to return to India after the SCO conference.

China had first invited President Ramchandra Paudel to participate in the event. But he refused because of his close relationship with Japan. Poudel was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun in 2022 by the Japanese government. Officials of Sheetal Niwas say that for that reason, he expressed his reluctance to participate in China's victory parade. Previously, participation in this program was from the staff level.

Meanwhile, the Japanese government has asked European and Asian countries not to participate in military parades and other events hosted by China. In the news published by Japan's news agency Kyodo on August 8, it is said, "All of Japan's allies have been urged to do so." Our declared policy is not to embarrass anyone. So far, we have not treated Japan like that in any forum," he said. The government may have taken a decision after considering what is right and what is wrong.' 

International affairs expert and analyst Geza Sharma Wag calls the participation of the Prime Minister of Nepal in a military parade against a friendly country as short-sighted and inconsistent diplomacy. "Nepal's foreign policy is based on non-alignment, neutrality and the United Nations Charter," he says. Which is unfortunate. Chandradev Bhatt, an expert in international affairs, says that looking at the names of the countries participating in the military parade, it shows a kind of lobby. There are more countries that are inclined towards China. Our presence in that lobby sends a message about where we stand in world politics," he said. "It seems that Nepal has taken sides. Which is against our foreign policy. It was not necessary for us to participate in that program.'