Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told a conference of the country’s envoys on Wednesday that the relationship with China has transformed into a multi-dimensional partnership, and it was a “time-tested” friend of Pakistan.
“We are determined to take Sino-Pakistani relationship to new heights as China is a time-tested friend of Pakistan. Relations with China have strengthened with the passage of time,” Xinhua news agency quoted Nawaz Sharif as saying.
Pakistani envoys from important capitals of the world as well as multilateral organisations were invited to the conference, starting Aug 3, to brief the government about the developments in the countries of their work.
The Prime Minister was the chief guest at the concluding session at the Foreign Ministry to listen to the suggestions by the envoys and to share his vision about the foreign policy.
“We are thankful to the government and people of China on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor’s project. It is not only an economic prosperity project but a game changer as with CPEC we are introducing a new vision of mutual relations in the region,” he said.
He described CPEC as the project of common economic interests and said there are also opportunities for Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia.
“We want to lay foundation of new relationship in region. The CPEC will guarantee regional peace and prosperity,” Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.
Talking about the country’s foreign policy, the Prime Minister said Pakistan believes in the policy of non-interference and respect of sovereignty of other countries.
On Afghanistan, he said the process initiated by the Quadrilateral Coordination Group of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the US (QCG) should be taken forward.
The QCG that was started in December in Islamabad has been trying to broker direct talks between the Afghan government and Taliban. However, there has been no success so far and the QCG is struggling to encourage the political dialogue in Afghanistan.
“Pakistan will always support efforts aimed at reviving peace in Afghanistan. Pakistan has a clear stance that it will not allow its territory to be used against any other country,” he said.
–IANS