China urges ‘jointly’ creating safe environment for cooperation with Pakistan

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - China underscored Tuesday the need and urgency to “jointly” create a safe environment for cooperation between the two countries, reiterating that relations with Pakistan were a ‘priority’ in its foreign relations.

It was expressed in a joint statement released in Islamabad after Chinese Premier Li Qiang held talks with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Li is on a four-day visit to Pakistan where he will attend a two-day summit of government leaders of Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states.

Beijing’s emphasis on enhanced security comes after at least three people, including two Chinese nationals and a Pakistani, were killed and 17 injured in an Oct. 6 suicide attack near the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi.

Acknowledging efforts made by Islamabad, Beijing, however, underscored the “need and urgency” to take targeted security measures in the South Asian nation where it has pledged to invest $64 billion under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Beijing has invested nearly $30 billion since 2014 when the mega infrastructure projects under CPEC as part of the Belt and Road Initiative was launched in Pakistan.

In March, a suicide bomber killed at least five Chinese nationals in the Shangla district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, who were working on the Dasu Hydropower Project in the remote Kohistan district. Their Pakistani driver was also killed in the attack.

Pakistan strongly condemned the attacks and “pledged to find out the whole truth … and hunt down and bring to justice all the perpetrators,” according to the 30-point joint statement.

Islamabad emphasized “its firm and unswerving commitment to further enhancing security input and coordination, further strengthening security measures, and making comprehensive efforts to ensure the safety and security” of Chinese personnel, projects and institutions in Pakistan.

- Opposed to violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty

Islamabad and Beijing also expressed concern about the conflict in the Gaza Strip as well as Israeli aggression against Lebanon.

Urging an immediate and permanent cease-fire in the besieged enclave, the two sides said: “We oppose practices that violate the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, the violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity and oppose moves that fuel antagonism and escalate tensions.”

*Amir Latif contributed to the story