China has proposed Chen Song, one of its senior diplomats, as the new ambassador to Nepal.

Chen is currently deputy director general at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He will replace Hou Yanqi, who has already returned to China after completing her four-year tenure in October. Hou had assumed office in Kathmandu in December 2018.

The Chinese side informally communicated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about its decision to appoint Chen as the new envoy but no official communication has yet been made, according to a foreign ministry official.

“I came to know about the decision yesterday,” Bishnu Pukar Shrestha, Nepali ambassador to China, told the Post over the phone. “As Chen has been looking after Nepal affairs at the Chinese foreign ministry, he is quite familiar with Nepal-related issues.”

Shrestha has already congratulated Chen, who will take up his assignment in Kathmandu after China officially informs the government of Nepal.

Chen is a familiar face in Nepal’s diplomatic circles as he has in the past been a part of several meetings with Nepali officials.

Shrestha said that the Chinese side could soon communicate its decision to appoint Chen as its new ambassador to Kathmandu. After receiving the agreement Beijing sends, a formal announcement will be made, which will take some time as per the standard diplomatic practice.

Hou, the outgoing Chinese Ambassador to Nepal, has been transferred to look after ASEAN countries in Indonesia.