China willing to expand CPEC’s framework

BEIJING: China is willing to enrich and expand the scope and framework of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) for the country’s scoio-economic development and to pass on its maximum benefit to the people.

"We are firmly committed to promote the construction of the CPEC for the benefit of the Pakistani people,” this was stated by the spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Hua Chunying while commenting on completion of the Sukkur-Multan section of the Peshawar-Karachi Expressway, here at a regular news briefing on Thursday.

She noted that the length of the Sukkur-Multan section is 392 km. It is the largest transportation infrastructure project of the CPEC and one of its early harvest projects.

According to the spokesperson, the project officially started in August 2016 and was completed ahead of schedule on July 23 this year.

During the construction process, the project created a large number of employment opportunities for the local area. The project created about 29,000 jobs and trained a large number of technicians.

China believes, the spokesperson added, the completion of the project will play an important role in promoting the economic and social development of the two countries, especially Pakistan. China and Pakistan are all-weather strategic partners. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a landmark project for pragmatic cooperation between the two countries. "We are willing to work together with Pakistan to firmly promote the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, continuously enrich and expand the connotation of the corridor, realize the high-quality development of the corridor, and bring more tangible benefits to the people of the two countries and the wider surrounding areas," she added.