By Ajmal Khan Yousafzai
ISLAMABAD: China will continue to strengthen Pakistan’s capacity to fight the coronavirus outbreak, assured Beijing’s Ambassador to Pakistan Yao Jing. The Chinese ambassador called on Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi to discuss Pakistan-China bilateral relations, the fight against the pandemic, China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and other matters of mutual interest, said a statement from the Foreign Office (FO).
Qureshi thanked China for extending support to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s global initiative for debt relief amid the outbreak and appreciated the Chinese people for providing medical supplies to Pakistan. “The large amounts of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical equipment sent by Beijing has significantly strengthened our capacity to control the coronavirus,†Qureshi said.
The country’s top diplomat also appreciated Beijing’s gesture of sending a team of medical experts to help their Pakistan counterparts contain the virus. He underscored that Pakistan and China are “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partners†and have continued to stand shoulder-to-shoulder during challenging times.
The foreign minister also maintained that CPEC is a transformational project and completing the corridor is a priority of the government. The Chinese ambassador, appreciating Islamabad, said Pakistan is a close friend and President Arif Alvi’s visit to the Chinese capital in March solidified the close ties between the two countries. Reiterating the relationship between China and Pakistan, Qureshi and Jing said the two “iron brothers†would continue to strengthen bilateral ties at all levels.
