Beijing: China said Monday that it was ‘pleased’ over Pakistan’s ‘positive interactions’ with India. China also said it will work with Islamabad to ‘inject’ positive energy into regional peace, stability and development in the region. The militaries of India and Pakistan announced February 25 that they have agreed to strictly observe all agreements on ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir and other sectors.
Weeks later, both Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan and powerful Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa made peace overtures towards New Delhi. Both said it was time for the two neighbours to ‘bury the past and move forward’.
“We are happy about the active interactions between Pakistan and India,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a media briefing here in response to a question.
But an official transcript posted on the Chinese Foreign Ministry website later Monday evening quoted him as saying that China is ‘pleased with Pakistan’s recent positive interactions with India’. “We are ready to work with Pakistan, and continue to inject positive energy into regional peace, stability and development,” he said.
Zhao was responding to a question on Pakistan President Arif Alvi’s remark that China is his country’s ‘closest and friendliest friend’ during his speech at the Pakistan Day parade March 25.
“China warmly congratulates Pakistan on the 82nd Pakistan Day, and believes that the Pakistani government and people will make steady progress on the path of national development and rejuvenation. China also cherishes its all-weather strategic partnership of cooperation with Pakistan,” Arif said.