ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan has concluded his highly successful visit to Pakistan on Tuesday, the Dispatch News Desk (DND) news agency reported.
The visit was in continuation of high-level exchanges between Pakistan and China, which have acquired an increased momentum since Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to China in November 2018 and his participation in the 2nd Belt and Road Forum in Beijing in April 2019.
In addition to his call on President Dr Arif Alvi, the Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan held detailed talks with Prime Minister Imran Khan. Both leaders witnessed signing of a number of Agreements/MoUs and inaugurated several key projects.
Besides, the President of Pakistan conferred Pakistan’s highest civil award Nishan-e-Pakistan upon the Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan.
In Lahore, the Chinese Vice President met with the Chief Minister of Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar and held a meeting with the Governor Punjab Chaudhry Sarwar who hosted a banquet in his honour.
In a statement, the Foreign Office said that the interactions of the Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan with the Pakistani leadership were marked by traditional warmth and cordiality. The visit provided the opportunity to the leadership of the two Countries to review the entire gamut of bilateral relations and exchange views on important regional and international issues of mutual interest.
The two sides held in-depth discussions on Phase-II of CPEC including industrial and agricultural cooperation and socio-economic development, and on deepening practical cooperation in tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Both countries underscored their firm commitment for early completion of ongoing CPEC projects and to further expanding CPEC.
The two Countries also agreed to enhance bilateral trade volume in a balanced way. In this respect, they resolved to implement the recently concluded 2nd Phase of China Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) at the earliest.
They further agreed that the early development of prioritized Special Economic Zones (SEZs) will play an important role in further enhancing economic relations between the two countries.
The Pakistan-China All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership is unique in modern inter-state relations, marked by exceptional trust, mutual understanding and support for each other’s core interests. China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the flagship project of the Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), has added a practical dimension to the relationship and further fortified it.
The Chinese Vice President’s visit has imparted a strong impetus to the further deepening of the time-tested friendship between Pakistan and China. It has reinforced the consensus reached between the leadership in their earlier interactions on the multiple dimensions of bilateral cooperation and set the tone for future trajectory of mutual engagement.
The visit has added to the vitality of the Pakistan-China bilateral partnership, which remains unaffected by adverse regional and international developments, and continues to grow from strength to strength.
