Nepal navigating great powers: China, India and the United States from the Cold War to the 21st Century

Few countries in the world face a geopolitical environment as complex and consequential as Nepal. Nestled in the Himalayas between the rising power of China and the regional giant India, and increasingly engaged by the United States, Nepal occupies a strategic space disproportionate to its territorial size and economic weight. Throughout its modern history, Nepal has confronted the enduring challenge of maintaining sovereignty, strategic autonomy, and national dignity while navigating the interests of competing great powers.

The geopolitical significance of Nepal derives not merely from geography but from its location at the intersection of major civilisations, security concerns, trade corridors, and competing visions of regional order. During the Cold War, Nepal found itself influenced by the ideological and strategic rivalry between global blocs while balancing relations with India and China. In the twenty-first century, the strategic landscape has evolved into a more complex triangular dynamic among China, India, and the United States, characterised by competition for influence, connectivity, development, technology, and regional governance.