May 08 , 2015
News
PM Nawaz assures support to China on militancy in Xinjiang
Online
BEIJING: Pakistan will stand by China in combating militancy in its Muslim-majority Xinjiang province, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said, underlining that the security interests of both the nations are interconnected.
Pakistan understands and appreciates Chinese concerns about the security challenges posed by the East Turkestan Independence Movement (ETIM) in Xinjiang, Sharif said in an article in the state-run Global Times.
“We stand by China in combating ETIM threat. The security interests of Pakistan and China are interconnected and we appreciate the endorsement and support expressed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in regards to our efforts in tackling terrorism,” Sharif said. He added that Pakistan is of the firm view that the Chinese interest and participation in rebuilding infrastructure in Afghanistan and support for reconciliation process in that country would greatly enhance the chances of success in shared common goals of peace and development, while praising China’s efforts to restore peace in war-torn Afghanistan.
Sharif said the $46-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) launched by President Xi during his visit to Islamabad last month is an “epoch-making” initiative dictated by the “phenomenal economic progress of China”. “The completion of the projects under the umbrella of CPEC will have a revolutionary impact on the economic profile of Pakistan and go a long way in changing the lives of people belonging to all the four provinces of Pakistan,” he said.
Hs said that China would also undoubtedly benefit from this undertaking in many ways and be in a much better position to expand its commercial interests on the global level by securing shortest possible access route to the Arabian Sea as well as to import oil for its industrial machine at a much lesser cost and time.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk