Pakistan firmly adheres to One-China principle: president

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has reiterated that Pakistan firmly adheres to the One-China principle and rejects any form of ‘Taiwan independence’, as it always chooses to stand on the right side of history.

“Taiwan is part of China. There’s no other way as Pakistan will always stand by China and safeguard its core interests,” he remarked in an interview with the Chinese media. The talk marked the 73rd anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan.

This was the first such interaction of President Zardari with any foreign media after being re-elected for the second time in March. He said Pakistani people loved China as “there is no conditionality between us”.

Recalling the rapport between the previous leaders of the two countries, President Zardari said, “My late father-in-law, Pakistan’s former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto told the nation to look East, to look towards China.”

Commenting on the development of Gwadar Port, a starting point of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), President Zardari said a lot of work had been done at the port since the launch of the CPEC 11 years ago, noting that the port would always welcome investors from all over the world.

President Zardari said Pakistan was encouraging more schools to adopt the Chinese language into their compulsory curriculum.

Emphasising the importance of strengthening people-to-people exchanges between the two countries, he called for more policies to facilitate travel of people between the two countries.

Appreciating the achievements made by the Chinese people, the president said ensuring continuation of policies was one of the key reasons behind China’s success and Pakistan hoped to be more involved in China’s development process.