ISLAMABAD: The Chinese Embassy here has rejected the recent remarks by the US Chargé d’Affaires, cautioning Pakistan about alleged (Chinese) “debt traps” in Pakistan.
In a statement on Tuesday, the embassy termed the debt trap “accusation” a “rhetorical trap” in itself, playing the same old tune, and distorting the truth with an agenda.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Chinese Embassy spokesperson said, “Pakistan has stated publicly on multiple occasions that Western countries and multilateral financial institutions are its largest creditors, whereas China’s financial support and practical cooperation with Pakistan have effectively helped Pakistan stabilize its finance, develop its economy and improve people’s livelihoods.”
The spokesperson said, “In particular, the CPEC has brought Pakistan a total of US$25.93 billion in investment, created 261,000 jobs, built 510 kilometers of expressways, generated over 8,000 megawatts of electricity, and constructed 886 kilometers of core power transmission networks. The visible transformation brought to Pakistan and the tangible benefits to its people are evident to all.”
The spokesperson said, “Somehow the US diplomat is correct on one point: Pakistan is a free and sovereign country that could maintain ties with any nation it wished. China and Pakistan are a community with a shared future. Deepening the ironclad friendship and all-weather strategic cooperation serves the common interests of our two peoples, and represents their collective choice, which will not be disrupted by any third party, nor will we accept any external finger-pointing.”
The spokesperson stated, “In September, China and Pakistan signed an action plan to foster China-Pakistan community with a shared future, which identifies 63 measures across seven key areas to advance bilateral cooperation from now till 2029. It also reiterates that any attempt to disrupt or undermine our strategic cooperative partnership is bound to fail. We are ready to work with Pakistan to fully implement the action plan, jointly build an even closer China-Pakistan community with a shared future and deliver more benefits to our peoples.”
