Virus impact on CPEC within controllable range

BEIJING: The COVID-19 spreads will affect the construction of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to a certain extent, but the effect is to be within a controllable range, said a report published by Gwadar Pro on Wednesday.

The report says, it is a matter of concern these days, COVID-19 spreads rapidly in Pakistan, as confirmed cases have crossed 22,000 with 476 deaths.

The CPEC is a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which runs through the northern and southern parts of Pakistan, where the pandemic is getting worse.

The report added, now everyone is very much concerned about the COVID-19 impact on the construction of CPEC projects. Some people say that it has an impact, some say there is no impact, and others say the impact is very large.

The impact on CPEC will depend on the spread of the epidemic in days to come and the effectiveness of Pakistan’s epidemic prevention and control measures.

We should seek truth from facts. At the same time, we should be alert to the fact that there is a force in the world that does not wish to see the success of CPEC, so they arbitrarily exaggerate the impact of the pandemic on CPEC development.

The Chinese and Pakistani governments and peoples have firm determination to overcome difficulties caused by COVID-19 and promote CPEC construction.

Therefore, while fighting COVID-19 together, the two governments attach great importance to the continuous construction of CPEC projects.

Both governments have maintained close communication and coordination on specific issues of CPEC projects now. Normal flights between the two countries were temporarily interrupted due to the epidemic, but Chinese technicians had returned to the site by chartered airplanes.

According to the Chinese enterprises have implemented closed-off management and all CPEC projects have formulated prevention and control plans and implemented them very strictly, therefore effectively preventing the invasion of the novel coronavirus.