Islamabad, 22 May 2014 (TDI): Pakistan-China Friendship Center organized an event “Friendship Forever” on the eve of the 73rd anniversary of China-Pakistan diplomatic relations.
Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong attended the event and delivered a speech. China-Pakistan Friendship will flourish and prosper forever, he said.
Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong said, “On behalf of the Chinese Embassy, I would like to extend my warm congratulations. He offered his sincere gratitude to friends from all walks of life who have long been committed to friendship with China-Pakistan.”
Furthermore, Ambassador Jiang recalled President Xi Jinping’s metaphor of the China-Pakistan friendship as a “thriving tree with deep roots and luxuriant leaves”.
He recalled some memorable events, the planting of the Chinese tallow tree by Premier Zhou Enlai in Shakarparian Park in 1964 and the planting of pine trees by President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the Prime Minister House in 2015.
Such acts represent the mutual efforts of China-Pakistan leaders to nurture the relationship.
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)
While delivering the speech, Jiang Zaidong, praised the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He said it is the most important platform for cooperation between the two countries.
However, CPEC is a flagship project under the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). CPEC is a corridor that links Pakistan’s Gwadar port with Kashgar in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It highlights energy, transport, and industrial cooperation.
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China-Pakistan Defence Collaboration
Pakistan recognized the People’s Republic of China on January 4, 1950, becoming the first Muslim country. China and Pakistan established their diplomatic relations on May 21, 1951. Since then the relationship has grown into an “all-weather strategic cooperative partnership”.
Since the 1960s, China has been the major arms supplier for Pakistan. According to a report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, from 2019 to 2023, China supplied 82 percent of Pakistan’s arms imports.
However, this period saw Pakistan’s arms imports increase by 43 percent compared to 2014-2018. It comprises 4.3 percent of global arms imports and positions Pakistan as the fifth largest arms importer worldwide.
Pakistan and China are connected by an unbreakable bond. The bond serves as evidence of the enduring strength of friendship amid the turbulence of global politics.
So far, China and Pakistan share a close and strong friendship bond. China’s relationship has evolved into a “strategic cooperative partnership”. The two countries have traditionally valued each other as a strategic shield against India.
Ambassador Jiang reaffirmed that China is committed to supporting Pakistan and promoting high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. China through the BRI project aims to create opportunities for world development and mutual benefit of both countries.
