PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif emphasised the enduring and pivotal strategic partnership between Pakistan and China, calling it an anchor of regional stability and a beacon of hope for global peace and prosperity. Speaking at a ceremony in Islamabad to unveil sculptures of Pakistan’s founder Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Chinese leader Mao Zedong at the PM House, he expressed pride in the broad spectrum of cooperation between the two nations, from the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to defence production, education, and cultural exchanges. He praised the long-standing bond between the countries, describing it as rooted in mutual respect, trust, and shared values.
The South Asian region faces tremendous challenges in the realm of defence and security mainly because of the hegemonic designs of India, its state-sponsored terrorism and an unstable Afghanistan. Both China and Pakistan have no aggressive designs against any other country and instead want to collaborate in developmental pursuits to better the lives of their people. Pakistan wants to focus on economic development and is keen to divert its scant resources for this cherished objective. Pakistan’s economy is stabilizing and China surely deserves credit for its immense contribution in the process of stabilization. People of Pakistan are grateful to China for its steadfast support to Pakistan in strengthening not only its defence and security to ward off threats to the country and peace of the region but also offering unmatchable assistance to develop various sectors of its economy, especially modern infrastructure, agriculture, communication, IT and energy. For regional stability, China and Pakistan share a vision of One Belt One Road, which connects the region, thus bringing peace and prosperity.
The CPEC, which is the flagship project of OBOR, is progressing well, resolving some of the chronic problems of the country’s economy. The two countries have demonstrated their preference for peaceful co-existence by offering other countries to join the initiative and share fruits of progress and prosperity. Foreign policy experts point out that there are myriad opportunities for future cooperation in technology and economy, such as agriculture technology, marine science, earth science, information and communication technology. Lastly, tourism and culture are the main drivers of economic growth. The prospect of tourism needs attention, as it can promote cultural exchange between the two friendly states. It may be pointed out that some forces are active to cause a dent in the strategic friendship between the two countries and there is need to foil their designs to regain last momentum in the cooperative partnership.
