KATHMANDU: It is said that Nepal Army (NA) has planned to procure 26 armored personnel carriers (APCs) worth Rs 6 billion from China’s North Industries Group Corporation Limited (Norinco). The procured APCs are to be used by the Nepali peacekeepers deployed in various peacekeeping missions.
Similarly, NA planned to procure 10,000 CQ—the 5.56 mm version rifles from the same Chinese company.
Nepal Army has dismissed the reports.
The national army was all set to procure the 26 APCs from China. Nepal Army decided to procure arms via the Nepal Army Welfare Fund, when Sher Bahadur Deuba was the prime minister and also overseeing the defense ministry.
The ‘listing date’ was June 3, 2021, and the ‘divestment date’ for the procurement was June 3, 2022, according to a document.
Nepal Army was planning to procure the Chinese APCs, from Chinese firm, Norinco, which was sanctioned by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in November 2022.
It is revealed that Nepal Army has prepared to open the letters of credit (LCs) from the Himalayan Bank.
However, the Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Prabhu Ram Sharma, speaking at a function on Friday, said the army does not require any weapons at the moment.
“We are not procuring any weapon for the Nepali peacekeepers who are deployed in the UN missions, but as per the requirement, some study might be undertaken to procure some vehicle parts from a nearby market at an affordable price,” said Sharma.
“The Nepal Army has enough weapons in stock,” Sharma said in Kavre after marking the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers. “There is no need to procure weapons.”
However, the army was adamant about its decision to procure the APCs from China, and on May 18, it signed an agreement with Norinco to buy an ammunition plant worth Rs700 million. As per a May 23 decision, and in a separate deal, the army is also planning to buy CQ-a 5.56 mm version rifles and send Rs100 million for it soon, the final agreement for which will be reached in June.
