Islamabad waiting Xi Jinping who is arriving today
Monitoring Desk: A red carpet is waiting for Chinese President Xi Jinping who is arriving Islamabad on a two-day state visit to Pakistan today and a 21-gun salute will also be given to him at Nur Khan Airbase Rawalpindi, reports Radio Pakistan.
Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and three services chiefs would receive the guest at the airport. Eight JF-17 aircraft would escort the plane of the Chinese President as he enters the Pakistan airspace.
According to state media, President of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain will host a luncheon reception for the dignitary besides holding a meeting. The Chinese President and the Prime Minister will hold delegation level official talks. Xi Pinping will also address a joint sitting of the Parliament on April 21.
Ministry of foreign affairs indicated that both the countries would sign a number of important agreements and memorandums of understandings worth billions of dollars covering key development projects in the infrastructure, energy and communication sectors under the ambit of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
President Xi Jinping will be conferred the country’s highest civil award, the `Nishan-e-Pakistan’ at a special investiture ceremony at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.
Addressing a press conference, the Minister for Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal indicated that he Chinese President would inaugurate development projects worth 45 billion dollars under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. He said the corridor would link Gwadar port with China by a network of highways, railways and pipelines. He said the route would be used as a primary gateway for trade between China and the Middle East.
Ahsan Iqbal said power generation projects from water, solar, hydel and wind would be initiated in all the provinces including FATA and Azad Kashmir to overcome the energy crisis.
