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Tuesday, July 02, 2013
China ready to help out new Pakistan governmentBy Farooq Awan
ISLAMABAD: China on Monday pledged to walk hand in hand with Pakistan, in a positive signal for the newly elected heavy-mandate crises-stricken government of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
Beijing’s envoy in Pakistan Sun Weidong told a select group of journalists at his diplomatic compound that successful transition of power from one civilian government to the other elected government after May 11 elections shows that democracy is taking roots in Pakistan.
Hoping that the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to China will be fruitful and productive, the envoy said bilateral relations, future cooperation, trade and investment, energy and cultural exchanges will be prominent on the agenda. The ambassador said China is working to alleviate Pakistan’s energy woes and added that some important agreements are likely to be signed during Nawaz Sharif’s visit.
“Chinese companies are working on a number of projects in energy sector in Pakistan and many more are interested to invest,” he said.
To a question, the ambassador said proposed economic corridor linking Gwadar Port with China’s Xinjiang province will be one of the important topics to be discussed during the visit. He said management of Gwadar port has been taken over by China and hoped that the port is ready to turn into an economic hub that will be equally beneficial both for China and Pakistan.
The ambassador said the current trade volume between the two countries stands at $12 billion, and added that it needs to be increased. “The economic cooperation between Pakistan and China must match with political relations between the two countries,” he said.
Terming Pakistan an ‘Iron Brother’, the ambassador said Pakistan-China friendship is a unique example of nation-to-nation relationship in the entire world.
He said the newly elected prime minister of Pakistan has chosen China for his first-ever foreign visit which is enough to gauge the depth of relations between the two neighbours. “This will give a positive and an important signal to the world,” he added.
On terrorism, the Chinese envoy said both countries are working together to fight the menace. He said terrorism is a common threat and needs to be addressed jointly.
He said Pakistan government had assured Beijing of providing full protection and security to the Chinese nationals as well as companies working in Pakistan. He said his country was satisfied with steps being taken by the Pakistani government for the security of Chinese people working here.
“We hope Pakistan will be able to provide our people a safe and risk-free working environment.”
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk