This got here on the 4th version of the Pakistan-China Strategic Dialogue in Islamabad co-chaired by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang right here.

“Pakistan and China have reiterated their abiding commitment to the high-quality development of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project,” state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

Earlier, talking at a press convention after the SCO Foreign Ministers’ assembly in Goa, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar mentioned: “On the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, I think it was made very clear, not once but twice in the SCO meeting, that connectivity is good for progress, but connectivity cannot violate the sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

Later, Bilawal addressing a joint press convention with Qin mentioned this 12 months marked the completion of a decade of CPEC, which has accelerated socio-economic improvement, job creation, and enchancment of individuals’s livelihoods in Pakistan.

The CPEC Corridor is a USD 60 billion hall being laid via Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) with China’s help.

India is against the CPEC because it passes via the PoK, giving China entry to the Arabian Sea via the Gwadar port in Pakistan’s Balochistan province.

“This corridor project remains a win-win economic initiative opened to all investors around the world,” Bilawal mentioned, including that Pakistan reiterated its “abiding commitment to its [CPEC’s] high-quality development”.

“CPEC remains a shining example of the Belt and Road Cooperation, which is accelerated socio-economic development, job creation and improvement of the people’s livelihoods in Pakistan,” he mentioned.

Bilawal additionally mentioned Pakistan was profoundly grateful to China for its beneficiant and well timed help as “we continue to grapple with the headwinds in the global economy”.

He mentioned Pakistan and China at all times supported one another on problems with core nationwide pursuits in each bilateral engagements and multilateral boards.

“We appreciate China’s steadfast support on all our issues including its principled position on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.”

“We deeply appreciate China’s firm support for Pakistan’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and national development as well as China’s principled and just stance on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.”

India has beforehand criticised statements by Pakistani and Chinese leaders on the Kashmir concern, saying that New Delhi rejected their unwarranted references to the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

“We have persistently rejected such statements and all events involved are effectively conscious of our clear place on these issues. The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh are and at all times might be integral and inalienable components of India.

No different nation has locus standi to touch upon the identical,” a Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson had mentioned earlier in response to feedback by China and Pakistan on the Kashmir concern.

The Chinese overseas minister mentioned China stood able to work with Pakistan to advertise the high-quality improvement of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), speed up the CPEC development, deepen cooperation in fields comparable to business, agriculture, info know-how, and catastrophe prevention and mitigation, and assist Pakistan restore its economic system and enhance folks’s livelihood.

At the press convention, Bilawal mentioned Pakistan and China have stood with one another for many years and can proceed to take action within the many years to return. He mentioned Pakistan will proceed to firmly help China on all core problems with its nationwide pursuits.

He reiterated Pakistan’s agency help for China “on all its core issues, including One-China policy, Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and the South China Sea”.

Bilawal mentioned the partnership between the 2 nations has grown through the years and enjoys consensus throughout generations and political divides.

“We had an in-depth exchange of views on the entire spectrum of bilateral cooperation. We agreed to the significance of this partnership for the mutual benefit of our two nations in the face of new developments,” he mentioned.

The minister mentioned Pakistan-China friendship is irreversible and the mutual heat and belief between the peoples of the 2 nations is a shining instance of multi-cultural cooperation.

“China can always count on Pakistan as its most reliable partner and trusted friend. Friendship with China is the cornerstone of Pakistan’s foreign policy. The centrality and criticality of Pakistan’s all-weather partnership with China cannot be overstated,” Bilawal mentioned.

He additionally mentioned that Pakistan was in opposition to bloc politics or higher energy competitors of any form and seemed ahead to working along with all nations to handle frequent challenges of improvement and connectivity.