China desirous of collaborating with OIC states: Shah Mahmood Qureshi

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Monday that Pakistan is appreciative of the fact that China is desirous of collaborating with the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and developing a better understanding with the Islamic countries.

While addressing a joint press conference in Islamabad along with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said it is the first time that a Chinese Foreign Minister is going to participate in the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFMs), which reflects special relationships between Pakistan and China.

FM Qureshi said Beijing has expressed the desire to promote Pakistani exports to China by allowing import of more Pakistani rice and improve the balance of trade between the two countries and support Pakistani agriculture, Radio Pakistan reported.

He said we had a good overview of our commercial, bilateral trade and investment opportunities. He said we also signed a number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) that will further facilitate bilateral cooperation in different fields.

Qureshi said the two sides agreed to have a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of OIC Session of Council of Foreign Ministers (CFMs). He said we concluded a comprehensive review of our bilateral relations, the regional challenges and the evolving situation in Ukraine.

The foreign minister said they discussed the extension of CPEC to Afghanistan and the Chinese Foreign Minister is of the view that we can revisit because of the changing environment within Afghanistan, which would support regional integrity and prosperity.

On counterterrorism, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said both sides have agreed to have a coordinated approach in dealing with organizations like East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), who have been destructive and a menace for peace and security.

He thanked China for its unflinching support in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). He said Pakistan is appreciative of China’s consistent support to see Islamabad out of the grey list.

The foreign minister also thanked China for announcing depositing two billion dollars with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Talking about evolving situation in Afghanistan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi said there is once again an opportunity for initiating the trilateral process between China-Pakistan and Afghanistan. He said he would soon be visiting China at the invitation of his Chinese counterpart to participate in the meeting of immediate neighbours of Afghanistan.

State Councilor and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi Monday said that China was attending the 48th meeting of OIC’s Council of Foreign Ministers, scheduled here on Tuesday, for developing a partnership with the Muslim world besides promoting unity and cooperation for the multilateralism.

The Chinese foreign minister, after his bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, told media that the CFM’s theme of “Building Partnerships for Unity, Justice, and Development” had great significance in the current scenario and was also the main purpose of Chinese participation, state news agency reported.

Wang Yi, who is on his first visit to Pakistan after COVID-19 pandemic, said China would expand its support to Pakistan in poverty reduction, modernizing the agriculture sector for sustainable development. He called for closer multilateral cooperation on regional and international issues including Afghanistan and Ukraine.