It is heartening to note that there is a consensus among all political parties on the very important project and game changer in the region China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
All the major political parties of Pakistan’s mainstream demonstrated consensus in support of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and reiterated their unwavering commitment to further strengthening bilateral relations between Islamabad and Beijing.
The third meeting of the China Political Parties Forum and Political Parties Joint Consultative Mechanism, held in Islamabad, which was co-chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs Ishaq Dar and Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Liu Jianchao,
The meeting was attended by Senate Chairman Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, senior leadership from all major political parties, including Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui of MQM Pakistan, Senator Mushahid Hussain ,Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman of JUI (F), Hina Rabbani Khar of Pakistan People’s Party, Senator Syed Ali Zafar of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Manza Hassan of Istehkam Pakistan Party, Senator Jan Muhammad of National Party, senior politician Afrasiab Khattak, and others.
Speaking at the meeting, the PTI leader said that CPEC is a testament to Pakistan-China friendship. We have to make it successful as a lot of time has passed. We have seen progress, but it has been slow. We hope it will accelerate.
Deputy Prime Minister Senator Ishaq Dar said that CPEC has played an important role in Pakistan’s socio-economic development. He said that in addition to ridding the country of an old load shedding issue, development projects under CPEC have helped create hundreds of new employment opportunities for the Pakistani people, which they will never forget.
The two countries expressed consensus on implementing the second phase of CPEC and signed a mechanism for third-party participation in the project during the recent visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to China,
China-Pakistan economic and strategic partnership is a crucial pillar and there is complete consensus on its importance as it has energized Pakistan’s efforts towards socio-economic prosperity and regional connectivity.
The participation of Pakistan’s national leadership and political parties in the meeting reflect a national consensus on Pakistan-China relations and CPEC.
The CPEC started in the era when no foreign investor was ready to invest in Pakistan so it can be called a real game changer with Pakistan’s point of view.
CPEC is a hope for stability, regional connectivity, economic growth and development. Gwadar provides China with direct access to the Arabian Sea and will prove to be a precursor for economic revival for Pakistan.
Both Pakistan and China are witnessing a high-quality second phase and both parties are prioritizing sectors such as agriculture, information technology, industry, mining, and minerals.
The commitment of the leaderships of both countries has sent a clear message to the world that the China-Pakistan friendship is unbreakable.
But it is a matter of great concern that India and some other players are opposing the CPEC and misguiding the international community regarding it. There is a need that Information ministry Islamabad should establish a special cell to riposte the propaganda against Pakistan and China strategic partnership in befitting manner by using social media