Halting aid for Nepal as some European countries did after the king's recent power grab will fuel terrorism in the insurgency-wracked nation, the finance minister said Monday. Nepal relies heavily on foreign aid for development projects and for its nine-year fight against Maoist insurgents who want to replace the monarchy with a communist state. The conflict with the Maoists - called terrorists by the government - has claimed more than 10,500 lives. Nepal told donor nations at a meeting in Paris that suspending aid will help terrorists gain ground in this impoverished Himalayan country, Finance Minister Madhukar Shamsher Rana said. "We told them if you arrest development in Nepal, you help terrorism that feeds on poverty," Rana told The Associated Press upon his return from France. "They have to choose between supporting us and helping the terrorists."