President Xi visits Pakistan pavilion at China import expo

SHANGHAI: President Xi Jinping today visited Pakistani pavilion titled 'Emerging Pakistan' at the China International Import Expo (CIIE) where he was welcomed by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The Chinese president and other world leaders including Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat remained at the stall for sometime and discussed the trade potential with Pakistani officials.

Pakistan has set up the pavilion as 'Country of Honour'.

Organisers say more than 3,000 foreign companies from 130 countries including the United States and Europe are present, including General Motors, Ford, Microsoft, Samsung, Walmart and Tesla.

PM Imran Khan is on maiden visit to China on invitation of Chinese leadership. He was the keynote speaker at the CIIE inaugural session earlier today.

Addressing the opening ceremony at the National Exhibition and Convention Center Shanghai,  PM Khan said Pakistan was a leading exporter of sports goods, medical instruments and IT products.

He said with a promising 100 mln human resource, under the age of 35, the country has a rich potential, and was an attractive place for foreign investors.

He said Pakistan has an array of resources, minerals and renewables amidst the most diverse landscape.

The prime minister lauded the vision of President Xi Jinping who said "the doors of China will always remain open", particularly at a time when protectionism was at a rise.

The prime minister expressed his gratitude to the government of China for the warm hospitality and participation in the Shanghai Expo.