Pakistan and China on Saturday confirmed their commitment to elaborate on bilateral relations and expand cooperation across different sectors, in the midst of growing regional and global challenges.
The confirmation came during a meeting between planning minister Ahsan Iqbal and Chinese Vice Minister of Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in Beijing, where both sides discussed questions of mutual interest with a special focus on the second phase of the China-Pakistani economic corridor (CPEC).
Iqbal praised Peking’s consistent support for Pakistan, especially in recent tensions with India, and praised China’s leadership for his role in promoting global peace. He also described the Pakistan-China friendship as becoming stronger “with each existing day” and called China’s development model an inspiration for Pakistan.
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Deputy Foreign Minister Sun repeated China’s strong commitment to improve cooperation with Islamabad and expressed satisfaction with progress made during CPEC. He confirmed Peking’s intention to further strengthen strategic ties and elaborate on cooperation in political, economic and regional affairs.
The meeting emphasized the long-standing partnership between the two countries, often described as “All-Weather” and “Ironclad,” and came days after an interaction at a high-level interaction between the management of both nations.
Last month, Chief of Staff Gen Syed Asim Munir met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to Beijing. The Chinese Foreign Minister had emphasized that Pakistan remains a diplomatic priority for China and repeated support for Pakistan’s efforts to fight all forms of terrorism.
Wang expressed confidence in the Pakistani military’s ability to ensure security and security of Chinese staff, projects and institutions across the country. He also confirmed China’s readiness to work closely with Pakistan to implement the strategic consensus reached by the leadership of both sides and jointly promotes regional peace and stability.
