Premier Li Keqiang on July 27 sent a congratulatory message to Sher Bahadur Deuba on his assuming office as Nepal's prime minister.

With adjoining mountains and rivers, China and Nepal are friendly close neighbors who help each other, said Premier Li in the message.

He also extended his willingness to work with Prime Minister Deuba to overcome the challenges of COVID-19 epidemic, promote high-quality BRI cooperation, and expand and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, in order to bring the strategic partnership of cooperation featuring long-lasting friendship for development and prosperity to a new level.