CPEC has provided enormous benefits to people of Pakistan: FO

Islamabad: Pakistan has said that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) had provided enormous benefits to the people of Pakistan.

Speaking at a news briefing here, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said the CPEC was the crown jewel of Pakistan-China economic collaboration.

“It is an important project to which both Pakistan and China are fully committed. We believe that CPEC has provided enormous benefits to the people of Pakistan. The energy projects that have come online as a result of Chinese investments under the CPEC framework demonstrate their importance for Pakistan’s economy and for Pakistan’s development,” she added.

Similarly, she maintained, the people of Pakistan were already benefiting from the road infrastructure and the motorway projects developed under CPEC, and anyone who travels on these roads can appreciate the economic significance of these infrastructure projects.

“The development of Gwadar Port is also a major achievement of CPEC. We believe that all these projects are contributing and have the potential to further contribute to Pakistan’s development and prosperity,” the spokesperson mentioned.

Bakoch also informed that Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) FMs meeting in India next month.

The SCO is a regional political and security bloc whose members include China, Russia, India and Pakistan. The two-day gathering will begin on May 4 in the western coastal state of Goa.

Baloch said Bilawal will be attending the SCO meeting at the invitation of his Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar.

“Our participation in the meeting reflects Pakistan’s commitment to the SCO Charter and processes and the importance that Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities,” Baloch underlined.

She added: “Pakistan continues to participate in SCO meetings in keeping with our longstanding commitment to SCO.”

The FM, she mentioned, had also attended the last meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers held in July last year in Tashkent.

Bilawal’s India visit will be the first by a Pakistani FM in nearly 12 years. In 2011, the then-top Pakistani diplomat, Hina Rabbani Khar, now Bilawal’s deputy in the foreign ministry, had visited India.

Baloch reminded that Federal Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman represented Pakistan at the 4th SCO Meeting of Heads of Ministries on Environmental Protection. The meeting was held in online format in New Delhi on 18th April 2023.

“Yesterday, Director of the National Disaster Management Authority virtually attended the SCO Expert Meeting of Heads of Agencies for Prevention and Elimination of Emergency Situations while today Muhammad Idrees Mahsud, Member Disaster Risk Reduction, is virtually participating in the SCO Meeting of Heads of Agencies for Prevention and Elimination of Emergency Situations,” she said further.