A relationship beyond realm of diplomacy

The recent visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to Pakistan has surely been instrumental in exponentially expanding bilateral relations and elevating them to a new level of abiding strategic cooperation that holds the promise of not only serving the geopolitical, economic and security interests of both countries, but also the South Asian region and Central Asia.

We in Pakistan feel proud of aligning with the new Chinese vision for regional connectivity and shared economic prosperity, to be realized through the revival of the old Silk Roads (with the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road) and building of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. These are epoch-making initiatives dictated by the phenomenal economic progress of China and changing regional and global realities fraught with throwing open infinite opportunities to exploit the hitherto untapped resources for shared economic gains. The completion of the projects under the umbrella of the CPEC will have a revolutionary impact on the economic profile of Pakistan and go a long way in changing the lives of people of the four provinces the corridor passes through, as rightly pointed out by President Xi during his visit to Pakistan.

The CPEC will turn Pakistan into an economic hub for the region with all the accompanying benefits on perennial basis. China would also benefit from this undertaking in many ways and be in a much better position to expand its commercial interests at the global level by securing the shortest possible access route to the Arabian Sea and import oil for its industrial machine at a much lesser cost and time. It would indeed be a win-win situation for both China and Pakistan and the other countries of the region. Pakistan is a naturally endowed country. Its geostrategic location connecting three main sub-regions of Asia provides it with a unique advantage. We feel proud that this unique factor will help our friend like China in furthering its economic and strategic objectives.