——– PM holds talks with Chinese President, Premier
——– Expresses unflinching resolve to ensure safety of Chinese personnel in Pakistan
——– Both nations agree to ‘strengthen institutional linkages at all tiers and in all spheres of bilateral co-operation’
——– Both sides agree to protect CPEC from ‘detractors, adversaries’
——– Maintain on CPEC upgradation, advancement to 2nd phase of the project
From Mahnoor Makhdoom
BEIJING: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a productive meeting on Friday, reaffirming their commitment to the high-quality development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corri-dor (CPEC) and the timely completion of ongoing projects. They also agreed on upgrading CPEC and advancing its second phase.
The prime minister briefed President Xi on Pakistan’s policies for economic reform, industrial devel-opment, agricultural modernisation, and regional connectivity. He emphasised the critical role CPEC plays in Pakistan’s development, asserting Pakistan’s commitment to fostering synergy between the development strategies of the two countries through close coordination.
The meeting took place at the historic Great Hall of the People, with both leaders accompanied by federal ministers and senior officials. This was PM Shehbaz’s first meeting with President Xi since as-suming office in 2024. The encounter was marked by traditional warmth, reflective of the strong friendship and close strategic ties between the two nations. The prime minister thanked President Xi for the warm welcome extended to him and his delegation. He recalled President Xi’s historic visit to Pakistan in 2015, which marked the formal operationalisation of CPEC, ushering in a new chapter in bilateral relations.
The leaders reaffirmed the “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership” and expressed their re-solve to deepen cooperation across diverse domains, including political, security, economic, trade, and people-to-people exchanges. They also discussed regional and global developments, including the sit-uations in Afghanistan, Palestine, and South Asia, particularly the human rights situation in Indian Ille-gally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
Both sides reiterated their longstanding support for each other’s core interests.
Commending President Xi’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Global Development Initiative (GDI), Prime Minister Shehbaz highlighted CPEC’s significant contributions to Pakistan’s socio-economic de-velopment as the flagship project of BRI. He reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to ensuring the safety and security of Chinese nationals, projects, and institutions in Pakistan.
The prime minister also noted that Pakistan’s agenda for people-centric socio-economic development aligns with China’s concept of ‘shared prosperity.’
President Xi Jinping hosted a banquet in honour of Prime Minister Shehbaz, during which another round of discussions on matters of mutual interest took place.
Earlier, Pakistan and China have vowed to protect the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) from its detractors and adversaries as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif assured Beijing of providing complete security to personnel working on multi-billion projects.
PM Shehbaz is visiting China from June 4 to 8 at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, seeking to up-grade cooperation under the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a key part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
In a statement, the PM’s Office said during the meeting, the two sides discussed the significance of Gwadar as an important pillar of CPEC and agreed to expedite the timely completion of all related in-frastructure projects to transform Gwadar into a regional economic hub.
“They also expressed their firm commitment to protect CPEC from its detractors and adversaries and to upgrade CPEC in the form of enhanced cooperation,” the statement said.
The prime minister also reaffirmed Pakistan’s unflinching resolve to ensure the safety and security of Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan.
Chinese investment and financial support since 2013 have been key for the South Asian nation’s strug-gling economy, including the rolling over of loans so that Islamabad is able to meet external financing needs at a time when foreign reserves are critically low.
China has also invested billions in various power projects and road networks in Pakistan under the $65 billion CPEC plan, but the implementation of various projects has slowed in recent months.
During the talks, the two leaders discussed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations and discussed re-gional and global developments of mutual interest.
They noted that the Pakistan-China All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership was characterised by mutual trust, shared principles and strategic convergence.
Premier Li congratulated Prime Minister Shehbaz on Pakistan’s election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
The two leaders reaffirmed unwavering support for each other on core issues and expressed contin-ued commitment and support for the high-quality development of CPEC.
They also emphasised the timely completion of all ongoing projects with a special focus on industrial development, agriculture modernisation, Science & Technology and the development of Special Eco-nomic Zones for mutually beneficial and socio-economic development of Pakistan.
The two sides agreed to maintain high-level exchanges including strengthening institutional linkages at all tiers and in all spheres of bilateral cooperation.
Pakistan and China will also continue to consult closely on issues of regional and global significance and multilateral fora, especially during the two-year tenure of Pakistan as a non-member of the UNSC.
The delegation-level talks were followed by an MoU signing ceremony, witnessed by Prime Minister Shehbaz and Premier Qiang, where both signed 23 MoUs and agreements deepening cooperation in transport infrastructure, industry, energy, agriculture, media, health, water, socio-economic develop-ment and others of mutual interest.
The meeting was followed by an official banquet hosted by Premier Li Qiang in honour of the prime minister.
