Nothing can undermine Pak-China strategic ties: Kakar

BEIJING: Terming the Pak-China partnership made in “heaven”, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has said Pakistan blindly trusted China and that nothing would be allowed to undermine their bilateral strategic partnership.

In his opening remarks while meeting with President Xi Jinping Thursday, Kakar said Pakistan firmly supported the ‘One China’ policy and would show it through its actions, not just words. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Third Belt and Road Forum, attended by the leadership and representatives of around 140 nations. “Pakistan will not take an inch back when it comes to our relations with China,” he remarked as the two leaders met to discuss the bilateral and regional matters.

President Xi warmly received the prime minister as he arrived for the meeting accompanied by his delegation members, including Shamshad Akhtar, Sarfraz Bugti, Gohar Ejaz and others. The prime minister thanked the Chinese leader for inviting him to attend the “historic” Belt and Road Forum and also congratulated him on the resounding success of the event. He said President Xi’s address at the Forum was “profound, deep and visionary”, which offered a lot of opportunities for countries like Pakistan.

Kakar said the eight proposals President Xi put forth at the Forum were actually a roadmap for not just physical connectivity but also an important stabilising factor in international order. Kakar said the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was a “pragmatic” and “practical” answer to the global political, economic and civilisational challenges faced by many nations. He said China’s unprecedented progress was a role model, which transformed the lives of millions of its people, also having no parallel in world history. He told the Chinese president that across the whole political structure in Pakistan, there was no dissenting view about China.

In his remarks, President Xi said China stood ready to work with Pakistan to carry forward the traditional friendship and deepen the bilateral partnership. He also reiterated the resolve to accelerate building the China-Pakistan partnership in the new era of community for a shared future for the benefit of the two peoples. He also assured that China was committed to the high-quality development of CPEC and working for peace development in the region.

Meanwhile, in a meeting with the Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee Liu Jianchao, Kakar appreciated the role of the Communist Party of China in cementing the Pakistan-China relationship and fostering a greater understanding between the two countries. The prime minister noted that the goodwill between the peoples of Pakistan and China was at the heart of Pakistan-China all-weather strategic cooperative partnership.

Both Prime Minister Kakar and Minister Liu discussed the promotion of people-to-people contacts, including exchanges between parliaments, political parties, academia, media, youth, women and think tanks. These exchanges would help advance the exceptional friendship between Pakistan and China that endures from generation to generation, they viewed. Liu stated that the prime minister’s visit to China was in keeping with the time-honoured tradition of the special friendship between Pakistan and China.

In a meeting with a number of Chinese corporate executives on the sidelines of Third Belt and Road Forum, Kakar encouraged China’s corporate executives to explore the vast investment potential of Pakistan.

The enterprises whose representatives called on the prime minister included Minmetals, MCC, China Communication Construction Company, China Road and Bridge Corporation, COFCO, Amer International Group, China Energy, Power China and China Gezhouba Group. The prime minister apprised the Chinese businessmen of Pakistan’s initiatives for economic and financial stability. He encouraged the Chinese corporate executives to explore the vast investment potential of Pakistan, especially in IT, agriculture, renewable energy, textile, digital economy and mining and minerals sectors.

He also met the CEO of China Communications Construction Company Wang Haihuai and chairman of China Road and Bridge Corporation.

The heads of Chinese firms apprised the prime minister of the ongoing projects of CCCC and CRBC under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. They expressed their keen interest in enhancing their investment in the development of infrastructure, renewable energy and other sectors.