ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang resolved to protect the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project “from its detractors and adversaries”, the Foreign Office (FO) said.
Addressing a weekly press briefing, FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra-Baloch said the two leaders held delegation-level talks in Chinese capital Beijing this morning.
During the talks, premiers Shehbaz and Li Qiang reiterated their unwavering support for each other on core issues and also reaffirmed their continued commitment to CPEC’s high-quality development and the timely completion of all ongoing projects, Zahra said.
The two leaders asserted that the Pakistan-China All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership was “characterised by mutual trust, shared principles and strategic convergence,” she added.
PM Shehbaz also reaffirmed Pakistan’s “unflinching resolve” to ensure the safety and security of Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan, Zahra continued.
She said the two nations agreed to maintain high-level exchanges, including “strengthening institutional linkages at all tiers and in all spheres of bilateral cooperation”.
“Pakistan and China will also continue to consult closely on issues of regional and global significance and multilateral fora, especially during the two-year tenure of Pakistan” as a non-member of the United Nations Security Council, the FO spokesperson said.
Zahra highlighted that 23 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements were also signed, which were aimed at “deepening cooperation in transport infrastructure, industry, energy, agriculture, media, health, water and socio-economic development” among other areas.
PM Shehbaz will later travel to the city of Xi’an where he will hold meetings with the provincial leadership and business leaders in agricultural and green energy sectors, she added.
INDIA-OCCUPIED KASHMIR
Meanwhile, the spokesperson said Pakistan has called for India to be held accountable for its unabated human rights abuses in the Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) where more than 7,000 people have so far died in the custody of Indian forces during the last three decades.
Mentioning the reported death of a civilian at a police station in Pulwama district, she said “this is not the first incident of its kind as over the last three decades the number of custodial deaths in IIOJK has exceeded 7,000. The perpetrators of these crimes should be held accountable,” she said reaffirming Pakistan’s continuous political, diplomatic and moral support to Kashmiri people for the just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
Highlighting Pakistan’s election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the term 2025-26 with the overwhelming support of 182 members of the UN General Assembly, she thanked the members, particularly Asia Pacific Group for their confidence.
She told the media that at the Council, Pakistan would play its role in the peaceful resolution of disputes, opposing the resort to unilateral force, combating terrorism in all forms and manifestations, supporting UN peacekeeping efforts, resolution of regional and international crises, and promoting democracy, transparency, and accountability.
She strongly condemned the horrific bombing of Israeli forces on the UN-run school sheltering Palestinian refugees that led to multiple deaths of mostly women and children.
“This attack is another crime in a series of attacks against civilians, including an IDP Camp last week that resulted in the deaths of 45 Palestinians. The deliberate targeting of civilian population and facilities is a grave violation of international law and constitutes war crimes.”
Condemning the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound by hundreds of Israeli extremists, she said it was the responsibility of the occupation authorities to respect religious sites. We reiterate our call for an urgent and unconditional ceasefire to the massacre of civilians and hold Israel accountable for its crimes, she added. She told the media that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar would undertake a one-day visit to Istanbul to attend the extraordinary meeting of the D8 Council of Foreign Ministers on the situation in Gaza.
The D8 foreign ministers will deliberate upon the shared responsibility of the International community to bring an urgent and unconditional ceasefire and an end to the inhumane and unjustified war on the people of Gaza.
The deputy prime minister will present Pakistan’s stance on the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the urgency of the unconditional ceasefire, lifting of the siege and humanitarian relief for the Palestinian people.
The spokesperson informed the media about the passing of the Tunisian Ambassador in Islamabad Borhene El Kamel, due to prolonged illness, and expressed condolences and sympathies with the Tunisian government the grieved family.