At the invitation of the Government of Pakistan, Special Envoy of President Xi Jinping, Vice Premier of China and a Member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, He Lifeng will visit Pakistan from July 30 to August 1 to attend the 10th-anniversary celebrations of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
During his visit, He Lifeng will call on President Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. He will also be the chief guest at an event celebrating the ‘Decade of CPEC’, Foreign Office Spokesperson said in a press release.
Vice Premier He Lifeng has played a prominent role in China’s international economic relations and implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, of which CPEC is a flagship project.
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As the Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (2017-23), he was instrumental in the planning and execution of multiple CPEC projects in Pakistan.
“The visit is part of regular high-level exchanges and dialogue between Pakistan and China. It reflects the importance attached by Pakistan and China to further deepen their “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership”; reaffirm support on issues of each other’s core interests; enhance economic and financial cooperation; advance high-quality development of CPEC; and explore new avenues for strengthening trade and investment ties between the two countries,” the spokesperson further added.
Initiated in 2013 by then prime minister Nawaz Sharif, the multi-billion-dollar CPEC project was conceived and designed as the flagship project of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
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After extensive research and consultations and deliberations between representatives of the governments of China and Pakistan, a comprehensive portfolio of projects was identified for implementation under the early harvest phase (2018), short-term projects (2020), medium-term phase (2025), and long-term phase (2030).
Courtesy: APP with additional input by GVS