PM Shehbaz meets Chinese premier; both agree to work on CPEC’s Phase 2.0 – Pakistan

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday, with the pair reaffirming to work together on the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Pakistan and China share a longstanding strategic partnership with ties that span various sectors, including trade, energy, defence, and infrastructure.

“Both sides also agreed to continue working closely on the next phase of upgraded CPEC 2.0, with its five new corridors,” said a statement by the Press Information Department (PID).

The prime minister highlighted the “significant contribution” of the CPEC in Pakistan’s socio-economic development in the past decade. He also stressed the need for early implementation of the Main Line-1 (ML-1) railway project, the Karakoram Highway realignment and operationalisation of the Gwadar Port.

The PID statement noted the meeting was “warm and friendly”, with both leaders expressing their satisfaction at the positive trajectory of Pak-China relations.

PM Shehbaz expressed his “deepest gratitude to the Chinese leadership and nation for their unflinching support to Pakistan’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and socio-economic development”.

The premier’s ongoing visit was expected to mark the formal launch of the second phase of the CPEC-II, which focuses on industrial cooperation.

PM Shehbaz, who is currently on a six-day visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit held earlier this week, will also meet Chinese Minister for Information Technology and Industry Li Lecheng, the PID said.

“PM Shehbaz is also expected to preside over a business meeting, which is the second edition of the Pakistan-China Business-to-Business Investment Conference”, it added.

The B2B conference is going to be held in Beijing today, with a focus on exploring new avenues for strengthening trade and investment relations between Pakistan and China.

The conference will “review the outcomes of the first edition, chaired by Shehbaz Sharif in Shenzhen in June 2024, and outline future plans”.

PM Shehbaz had inaugurated the Pakistan-China Business Conference in June last year, in line with his vision to support, promote and lead collaboration between the businessmen of the two countries.

At the sidelines of the SCO summit — held from August 31 to September 1 — the two nations sought to explore new avenues to expand their bilateral ties and cooperation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged support for Pakistan’s home-grown capacity for development, expressing readiness to build China-Pakistan Economic Corridor 2.0 and upgrade the China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement, and step up cooperation in industries, agriculture, and mining sectors.

In the meeting, PM Shehbaz stressed the “significance of the CPEC as a flagship project of President Xi’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to help both countries to build an even stronger Pakistan-China community with a shared future”.

During his recent address at Tianjin University, PM Shehbaz reiterated that all endeavours and initiatives of the current government of Pakistan “closely align with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s vision and philosophy”.

The Pakistani government has sent 1,000 agriculture graduates from Pakistan to China to learn modern techniques, while about 30,000 students from Pakistan have been getting education and training in China, the premier noted.

In June, China rolled over $3.4 billion in loans to Pakistan to help boost Islamabad’s foreign exchange reserves.