Pakistan, China express satisfaction over progress on CPEC projects

ISLAMABAD: President Mamnoon Hussain and Chinese vice Premier Wang Yang in a meeting in Islamabad expressed satisfaction over progress on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects on Monday.

Mamnoon said Pakistan wanted to resolve all the outstanding issues with its neighbours peacefully.

The President said Pakistan in collaboration with China would continue its efforts to eliminate the menace of terrorism.

On this occasion, the Chinese vice premier said that Pakistan-China friendship was above personal interests and all other political constraints.

Both the leaders expressed their resolve to further enhance bilateral cooperation to ensure peace and stability in the region.

Earlier, Wang Yang called on Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in Islamabad and discussed issues of bilateral, regional and international interest.

The CPEC project is an economic corridor comprising a collection of projects currently under-construction at a cost of $51 billion.

CPEC aims to facilitate trade route that connects Kashgar and Gwadar through a network of highways, railways, and pipelines. It is the first and most important corridor out of six proposed corridors of China’s ambitious initiative to reach out to global markets through shorter routes. This corridor is about securing China’s trade routes and allowing it to position itself in the Arabian Sea.

The project is predicted to create upwards of 700, 000 direct jobs and add 2 to 2.5 percentage points to the country’s annual economic growth. This will improve the lives of people of Pakistan and China by promoting bilateral connectivity, construction, explore potential bilateral investment, trade, logistics and people-to-people contact for regional connectivity.