PM Sharif's China visit investment-oriented: Pak Planning Minister

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's visit to China this week and his meeting with top Chinese leaders will be focused on investments in Pakistan and step up cooperation between the two all-weather allies for the next phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, according to a senior minister.

Sharif will embark on a five-day visit to China on Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, during which the two leaders will jointly draw a blueprint to strengthen bilateral ties further.

This will be Sharif's first visit to China after he took over as prime minister for the second term after his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party-led coalition government came to power in March.

It will be focused on government-to-government and businessmen-to-businessmen investments in energy and agriculture sectors and Special Economic Zones, the Dawn newspaper quoted Planning and Development Minister Ahsan Iqbal as saying.

Chinese Ambassador in Pakistan Jiang Zaidong said on Monday that under the guidance of two leadership and strong support from the people of both countries, the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Sharif to China would achieve complete success and become a milestone in the development of China-Pakistan relations.

Highlighting the various components of the visit, he said the prime minister would meet and have talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang and the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Zhao Leji.

The leaders will have an in-depth exchange of views on China-Pakistan relations and issues of mutual interest, and jointly draw up a blueprint for the growth of bilateral relations, Jiang was quoted as saying by the official Associated Press of Pakistan news agency.

“China stands ready to work with Pakistan through this visit to make greater progress in our all-weather strategic cooperative partnership and take new steps in building an even closer China-Pakistan community with a shared future in the new era,” he said.

Regarding CPEC, he said the landmark Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project brought a total of USD 25.4 billion in direct investment, 2,36,000 jobs, 510 km of highways, more than 8000 megawatts of electricity and 886 km of core transmission network, generating a strong impetus to Pakistan’s economic and social development.

Sharif's visit aims to increase cooperation under the CPEC project, as the two all-weather allies look forward to launching its second phase.

The CPEC was launched a decade ago, and several energy and infrastructure projects had already been completed.

India firmly opposes the CPEC, which will link Xinjiang in China and the Gwadar port in Pakistan because it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan's Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of China's ambitious multi-billion-dollar BRI. The BRI is seen as an attempt by China to further its influence abroad with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments across the world.

The minister, who is also supervising CPEC projects in Pakistan, said the USD 8 billion ML-1 project -- the largest railway project in Pakistan -- would also be in the limelight during Sharif's visit. He added that the government had already allocated some funds for it in the coming budget.

Iqbal said funds had also been earmarked for the realignment of the Karakoram Highway, as the project is also expected to come under discussion during the prime minister’s visit.

The 1,300 km highway, laid through the Khunjerab mountainous pass, extends from Hasan Abdal near Pakistan's capital Islamabad to Kashgar in China's Xinjiang region. The road, called KKH, was inaugurated in 1978 after nearly 20 years of construction.

Sharif’s visit to Beijing, which is always a first stop for Pakistani leaders after taking over power, is taking place as Pakistan is facing a severe economic crisis with foreign exchange reserves continuing to remain at a low level. China is bankrolling Pakistan to maintain the balance of payments with periodic loans to maintain the requisite forex reserves.