REACTING to a report about the possibility of China gradually ending its financial support to Pakistan pledged under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Zhao Lijian, spokesperson of Chinese Foreign Ministry categorically stated on Monday that the two countries are resolute in pushing forward the CPEC and the prospects of the Corridor are bright. He termed such reports as groundless and pointed out that all projects are progressing ahead despite challenges.
This is a welcome assurance which speaks volumes about the commitment of Beijing to pursue the CPEC with original vigour that has resulted into fast-tracked completion of a number of projects. It is a reality that the world over projects and development programmes were either abandoned altogether or shelved for the time being due to the situation arising out of Covid-19 but there was no halt of work on any CPEC-related projects. There was also no cut in staff on these projects, which was a reflection of the fact that their implementation continued unhindered due to flow of resources by China. Incidentally, speakers at the 6th CPEC Media Forum, organized jointly by the Pakistan-China Institute and China Economic Net in cooperation with the Embassy of China, also noted negative propaganda being churned out by some vested interests against the gigantic initiative (which is part of BRI) emphasizing the need for joint actions to counter venomous propaganda. They pointed out that contrary to the propaganda about lack of interest; the two countries have embarked upon the second phase of CPEC that aims at industrialization of Pakistan. The Pakistan Government is also working hard to remove hurdles in the way of implementation and in a latest development Prime Minister Imran Khan chaired a meeting to review progress on ML-I, which is the largest project under the CPEC. Pakistan cannot afford slackness as CPEC is instrumental in accelerating the pace of socio-economic development of the entire country especially backward regions.
