Islamabad: Pakistan and China have agreed to invite third parties to participate in the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which is a key part of Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, a top Pakistani diplomat has said.
Pakistan’s state-run Associated Press of Pakistan reported that the country’s ambassador to China Moinul Haque told China’s official CCTV Sunday that the two countries are now working to extend CPEC to Afghanistan.
India firmly opposes the CPEC, which will link Xinjiang in China and the Gwadar port in Pakistan, because it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan’s Balochistan with China’s Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of China’s ambitious multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI is seen as an attempt by China to further its influence abroad with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments all over the world.
In his comments, the Pakistani envoy said the CPEC has been a “game changer and very important” for the socio-economic development of the country.
“Now, our two countries have agreed to invite third parties to participate in this project. We are now working to extend it to Afghanistan,” Haque said.
The ambassador highlighted that China is a global leader in many technologies including artificial intelligence, e-commerce and green technologies, the report said.
“So, it has been identified as one of the most important areas for the second phase, and we have established joint working groups for cooperation,” he said.
Haque said new corridors like the China-Pakistan Digital Corridor, Green Corridor and Health Corridor have been launched to benefit from the emerging opportunities in areas of science and technology and Information Technology (IT).
India has previously expressed its opposition to the plan of China and Pakistan on the participation of third countries in so-called CPEC projects.
“Any such actions by any party directly infringe on India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. India firmly and consistently opposes projects in the so-called CPEC, which are in Indian territory that has been illegally occupied by Pakistan,” the Ministry of External Affairs said last year.
“Such activities are inherently illegal, illegitimate and unacceptable, and will be treated accordingly by India,” the MEA statement said in July last year. Haque said the major focus has so far been on the energy sector because when CPEC kicked off, Pakistan was facing acute shortages of energy and long hours of load-shedding.
“New projects under CPEC have put in almost 8,000 megawatts of new energy into Pakistan’s system helping to fulfil not only the needs of the common man but also the industries,” he said.
“In Pakistan, we consider China as our best friend and in China, I know, Pakistanis are known as ‘Battie’, the iron brothers, an expression which is only reserved for Pakistan. It’s very heartwarming,” he added.
Haque said besides promoting economic relationships, trade, and investment industry, both countries are focusing on cooperation in culture, education and tourism.
PTI