BEIJING, Oct 31: A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman on Wednesday said  China and Pakistan attached great importance to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s upcoming visit and believed that with joint efforts of both sides, it would surely promote the further development of relations between the all-weather strategic partners.

“This is his first official visit to China since Prime Minister Imran Khan took office, in which, the leaders of the two countries will conduct in-depth exchanges on issues of common concern,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang said during his regular briefing here.

Prime Minister Imran Khan, accompanied by a high-level delegation will arrive in Beijing on Friday on his first official visit to China. He will also attend the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai.

The spokesperson said China and Pakistan were all-weather strategic partners. The relationship between the two countries was not affected by the changes in the international situation and the changes in their respective domestic situations, he added.

To a question that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) had caused some debt problems to Pakistan, he said he had answered that question many times.

The Pakistani government and all sectors of society, he said, had expressed that the corridor served as a mutually beneficial cooperation project between China and Pakistan and had played an important role in improving people's livelihood and promoting economic development in Pakistan.

Lu Kang said from time to time, individual parties had speculated that the project would bring financial or debt problems to Pakistan.  

The Pakistani side, he said, had clearly stated that the proportion of corridor debt in the debt structure of Pakistan was very low, which was not the cause of its current financial difficulties.

“If the CPEC will be discussed during the visit, I think, it is about how to promote and advance this project in a more sound way,” he added.

(APP)

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