Prime Minister Imran Khan to depart for China today

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan will depart for Beijing today for a five-day visit, where he will hold meetings with Chinese leadership including President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang and others.

Earlier, the premier was scheduled to visit China from November 2 to 5, but an updated schedule of the prime minister’s visit released by the incumbent  government yesterday, said the PM would now depart a day earlier (today).

A high-level delegation, including Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Finance Minister Asad Umar and others will accompany Mr Khan.

According to the scheduled issued by the Foreign Ministry, PM Imran is scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on 2nd of November. He will visit the Monument to the People’s Heroes at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and also meet the chairman of the National People’s Congress on November 3rd.

He [PM] will meet his Chinese counterpart, Li Keqiang the same day at a ceremony, during which the two leaders will sign memorandums of agreements between the two countries.

On November 4, the PM will speak at the Central Party School before leaving for Shanghai to participate in the first China International Import Expo.

As per details, more than 2,800 companies from 130 countries and regions, and 160,000 buyers from over 80,000 Chinese and foreign companies to participate in the expo.

The prime minister’s visit is expected to provide further impetus to enhancing the existing strategic ties between Pakistan and China and break new grounds for broadening the bilateral partnership.

Foreign Ministry of China in its statement earlier said that Prime Minister Imran Khan’s upcoming visit to China would provide an opportunity for leaders of the two countries to open a new chapter of development of bilateral relations under new circumstances.

The Chinese official expressed the confidence that relations between China and Pakistan would not be affected by a change in international and the domestic situations.