Turkiye’s participation in BRI: CPEC open and inclusive platform, says China

ISLAMABAD: China has maintained that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is an open and inclusive platform and both China and Pakistan will welcome all countries and international organizations to participate in the construction of the flagship project of Belt and Road Initiative to achieve common development.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said on Monday while addressing the media in Beijing: “The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is an open and inclusive platform. China and Pakistan welcome any efforts that support the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the CPEC,” Zhao said.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, addressing a joint a press conference along with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul during his recent visit to Turkiye, had invited Turkyie to participate in the CPEC construction and said he was willing to discuss the matter with Chinese leadership if Turkiye moved ahead with the idea of joining the flagship project.

“We hope countries and international organizations are ready to conduct mutually-beneficial cooperation and achieve common development,” the Chinese official said, adding that such countries and organizations could join the CPEC in appropriate ways to share the dividends of the Belt and Road Initiative.