New era of Pakistan-China cooperation has dawned, says PM Shehbaz Sharif

Islamabad: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said a new era of Pakistan-China cooperation in the information technology (IT), communication, mining, and energy sectors has dawned and will lead to economic development and deepening of the time-tested bilateral relationship.

Sharif's remarks came as he chaired a review meeting in Islamabad on Saturday on the implementation of agreements and MOUs reached during his recent visit to China, Radio Pakistan reported.

The prime minister said that the promotion of Pakistan-China cooperation in these fields will lead to economic development, strengthening of regional ties, and deepening of the relations between the two countries.

Referring to the time-tested Pak-China friendship, he said that China had always supported Pakistan in difficult times. “China has emerged as the strongest economic power and Pakistan can emulate its development,” he added.

The 72-year-old Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader said that no disruption will be tolerated in the implementation of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) signed during his visit to China, announcing to personally monitor the implementation of these agreements and MoUs.

The prime minister was also briefed about a delegation of Chinese shoemaking companies recently visiting Pakistan to shift their manufacturing units to the cash-strapped country and that the Chinese companies have the potential to invest USD 5-8 billion in this sector.

Regarding the agriculture sector, he was apprised that 12 leading companies of China will participate in the Food and Agri Expo to be held in Pakistan this year.

Sharif also reviewed the progress regarding sending 1,000 students from Pakistan to China on government scholarships for advanced training in the agriculture sector.

He directed that students from all four provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), should be sent to China on the basis of merit, while students from backward areas of Balochistan should be given special priority in the programme.

Sharif instructed to start sending students for modern agricultural training in China from the next academic semester.

Besides, the meeting was told that over 100 Chinese companies are in contact with Pakistani companies for business and investment.

The meeting was also briefed about the progress on the technical training of 3,00,000 students by Huawei, a one-stop operation to facilitate business, smart governance and smart city.

The prime minister was also apprised of the progress made by China on various communication, infrastructure, and electricity projects in Gwadar.

Sharif advised expediting measures for the development of Gwadar Seaport, Gwadar Airport, and Gwadar Industrial Zone to make Gwadar the hub of trade corridor in the region.

He also instructed to speed up the negotiations with Chinese solar panels and equipment manufacturing companies to move their factories to Pakistan.

The 72-year-old leader embarked on his first visit to China after he took over as prime minister for the second term after his PML-N party-led coalition government assumed power in March.

Addressing the Pakistan-China Business Forum last month, Sharif assured all-out facilitation to Chinese investors and the security of Chinese individuals, projects, and investments in Pakistan.

He said his government had taken various measures to ensure fool-proof security to protect the lives of Chinese workers in Pakistan.

Five Chinese nationals and a Pakistan driver were killed in a suicide attack in Dasu in March. Pakistan paid USD 2.58 million as compensation to the families of those killed in the attack.