Published by: World Tibet Network News, Friday, October 4, 1996

KATMANDU, Oct. 4 (UPI) -- Nepal and China have agreed to cooperate to preserve the pristine wilderness of the rugged Nepali-Tibetan border zone, officials said Friday.

The two countries plan to exchange information to control forest fires and to work together to stop poaching and illegal logging in the isolated region, Nepali environmental officials said.

Beijing and Katmandu will also form a joint committee to coordinate environmental preservation efforts and to raise awareness about the importance of conservation among the region's residents. The U.S.-based Mountain Institute will be asked to provide financial and technical assistance for the project.

The deal also calls for the two countries to promote cross-border tourism and carry out studies on how to to give border dwellers freedom of movement across the frontier to help improve their living standards, Jai Pratap Rana, chief of the King Mahendra Trust for Nature Conservation, said.

Tibet and Nepal share the world's tallest mountains, arid cold deserts and lush green forests in the Himalayan foothills.

Tibet, which was once independent, has been ruled by Beijing since Chinese troops invaded and annexed the region in 1950.

The agreement marks the first time Beijing and Katmandu are cooperating in an effort to preserve the environment in frontier area shared by Tibet and Nepal.