ISLAMABAD ( WNAM REPORT ): Pakistan and China reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation with the signing of the Joint Action Plan 2024-2029.
The development builds on the consensus reached earlier this week in a meeting between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Moreover, Pakistan and China have expressed satisfaction on Thursday over the positive trajectory of their ties and agreed to continue working closely on the next phase of the upgraded China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC 2.0), featuring five new corridors.
The understanding came during PM Shahbaz’s meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing.
The PM expressed gratitude to the Chinese leadership and people for their unwavering support to Pakistan’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and socio-economic development. He also congratulated China on the hosting of the SCO Council of Heads of State Summit in Tianjin and extended felicitations on the 80th anniversary of the success of the Chinese people in the War of Resistance and World’s Anti-Fascist War.
Highlighting the role of CPEC in Pakistan’s development over the past decade, Shehbaz stressed the need for early implementation of the ML-I project, KKH realignment and operationalization of Gwadar Port. He emphasized vast potential for B2B cooperation, citing agriculture, mines and minerals, textiles, the industrial sector and IT as priority areas. The premier also briefed his counterpart on the B2B Investment Conference held earlier in the day, which drew more than 300 Pakistani and 500 Chinese companies.
Reiterating Pakistan’s support for President Xi’s initiatives to strengthen multilateralism — including the Global Governance Initiative, Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative and Global Civilization Initiative — Shehbaz said Pakistan looked forward to marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties with China next year. The meeting concluded with a luncheon hosted by Premier Li in honor of PM and his delegation.
