Spokesman says Prime Minister Shehbaz will visit China on 23-26 May, meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang to strengthen ties
Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Anbrabi speaks at a press briefing on May 22, 2026. SCREENGRAB
The State Department on Friday declined to confirm or deny reports that Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir visited Iran, offering no comment amid an active week of Pakistan’s diplomatic engagement in the region.
Speaking at the weekly press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi neither confirmed nor denied the reported visit to Tehran. The development came when Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi paid two visits to Iran on May 16 and May 20, where he held meetings with the Iranian leadership.
Meanwhile, Andrabi announced that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will pay an official visit to China from May 23 to 26 at the invitation of the Chinese government.
He said the visit has “special significance” as both countries are marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations and will provide an opportunity to reaffirm the Pakistan-China All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership.
According to the spokesperson, Prime Minister Shehbaz is scheduled to hold meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. “The two sides will review bilateral relations, cooperation in political, economic and strategic fields, with special focus on high-quality development, trade, investment, industrial cooperation, agricultural modernization, information technology, science and technology, and people-to-people exchanges,” he said.
The Prime Minister will begin his visit to Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, where he will chair a Pakistan-China Business-to-Business conference covering sectors such as IT, telecom, energy, energy storage and agriculture. In Beijing, he will also attend a reception organized by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries to mark the anniversary.
“The visit is expected to further strengthen and deepen political trust, strategic coordination, expand practical cooperation and consolidate the long-standing friendship between the two countries,” Andrabi said.
In response to questions, the spokesman said the ongoing negotiations between the US and Iran could also come up during Prime Minister Shehbaz’s meetings with the Chinese leadership.
He added that Pakistan and China already shared established trust on Middle East affairs and recalled that both sides had agreed on a five-point agenda during Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar’s recent visit to China.
The spokesman said Pakistan continued its diplomatic efforts for peace, dialogue and de-escalation amid tensions in the Middle East and Gulf region.
He further noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz held two telephone conversations over the past week with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, where both leaders discussed bilateral cooperation and regional development, particularly the situation in the Middle East and Pakistan’s peace efforts.
Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to dialogue and diplomacy as the only viable path to lasting peace and stability.
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Andrabi added that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also remained actively engaged with regional counterparts as part of Pakistan’s diplomatic outreach.
On May 18, Dar held a telephone conversation with Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammad bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, while on May 17 he spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on regional development and multilateral engagement.
On May 16, Dar also spoke with Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov on bilateral relations and regional affairs.
The spokesman further confirmed Pakistan’s condemnation of two drone strikes carried out on May 17 targeting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and expressed solidarity with both countries.
Referring to the attack involving the United Arab Emirates, Anbrabi warned: “Any deliberate attack on nuclear facilities constitutes a serious violation of international law.” He added: “Nuclear installations must under no circumstances be targeted and we hope that this tragic and serious incident will not be repeated.”
The spokesman also paid tribute to Kashmiri leaders Mirwaiz Maulvi Muhammad Farooq and Abdul Ghani Lone, who were martyred on May 21 in 1990 and 2002 respectively. He also remembered the 70 Kashmiris who were killed while carrying Farooq’s coffin.
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“The lack of accountability for the gruesome killing of innocent Kashmiris and their leaders remains a crushing injustice and a shocking example of the brazen impunity that defines the deplorable human rights situation in IIOJK [Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir]” said the spokesman.
He urged the international community and the United Nations to take note of the situation and ensure a just resolution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Andrabi further said Pakistan welcomed the safe arrival in Istanbul of all prisoners from the Israel-captured Global Sumud Flotilla, including Saad Edhi, and thanked the Turkish government for its support.
He also noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz and Ishaq Dar had received a delegation of senior Bangladeshi officials visiting Pakistan under the Pakistan-Bangladesh Knowledge Corridor Initiative for a three-week program at the Civil Services Academy in Lahore.
Separately, Pakistan and Russia held the 16th meeting of the Pakistan-Russia Consultative Group on Strategic Stability in Moscow on May 18, where both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in international fora, the spokesman added.
