China-pakistan

Once seen as saviour, China is costing Pak millions of dollars. Here's how

China has reportedly demanded that Pakistan sign an agreement on anti-terrorism cooperation to address Beijing's security concerns

Pakistan makes $27-billion request from China, Saudi and UAE. Here's why

Pakistan's finance minister recently acknowledged difficulties faced by all segments of society because of high interest rates, energy prices, increased tax burden, and currency devaluation

Security agencies seize Pak-bound banned chemicals from China at TN port

Security agencies have seized yet another Pakistan-bound consignment, consisting of internationally banned chemicals used for tear gas and riot control agents, from China at a port in Tamil Nadu, officials said here on Thursday. According to officials, Pakistan is allegedly working on an offensive chemical and biological warfare program with the help of its 'all-weather friend' China. The officials said that the Chinese firm, Chengdu Shichen Trading Co. Ltd, had shipped a consignment of "Ortho-Chloro Benzylidene Malononitrile" to Rohail Enterprises, a Rawalpindi-based Defence supplier. The consignment, weighing about 2560 kgs, was stored in 103 drums of 25 kgs each and loaded into a carrier vessel Hyundai Shanghai (sailing under Cyprus flag), on April 18, 2024, at Shanghai Port, China, they said. The Karachi-bound vessel reached Kattupalli Port (Tamil Nadu) on May 08, 2024. The Customs authorities on routine checking detained the consignment as the chemical's name figured under ..

Pakistan to approach China to restructure its $15 billion energy debt

Pakistan has decided to approach its all-weather ally China with a formal request to restructure its USD 15 billion energy debt to help the cash-strapped country wriggle out of its financial woes. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb would visit China this week, the Express Tribune newspaper quoted highly placed sources as saying. While Iqbal's visit was pre-planned, the finance minister is being sent as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's special messenger, they added. Iqbal is scheduled to attend the Global Development Initiative forum to be held in China from July 11 to 13. As the finance minister's visit was not scheduled earlier, Pakistan's ambassador to Beijing has been instructed to arrange meetings with Chinese authorities, said the sources. A Cabinet member, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the premier decided the issue of Chinese Independent Power Producers' (IPP) debt should be immediately taken up for re-profiling. Accord

New era of Pakistan-China cooperation has dawned: PM Shehbaz Sharif

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said a new era of Pakistan-China cooperation in the information technology (IT), communication, mining, and energy sectors has dawned and will lead to economic development and deepening of the time-tested bilateral relationship. Sharif's remarks came as he chaired a review meeting in Islamabad on Saturday on the implementation of agreements and MOUs reached during his recent visit to China, Radio Pakistan reported. The prime minister said that the promotion of Pakistan-China cooperation in these fields will lead to economic development, strengthening of regional ties, and deepening of the relations between the two countries. Referring to the time-tested Pak-China friendship, he said that China had always supported Pakistan in difficult times. China has emerged as the strongest economic power and Pakistan can emulate its development, he added. The 72-year-old Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader said that no disruption will be tolerated in th

Baloch leader Marri condemns Pak's operation, alleges Chinese influence

Marri, known for his advocacy of Baloch independence, alleged that the operation was being conducted on the orders of China to protect its economic interests in Pakistan

Why an angry China is behind Pakistan's revamped counter-terror campaign

Pakistan's government recently approved a 'reinvigorated and re-energised' national counter-terrorism campaign, called 'Operation Azm-i-Istehkam'

No CPEC 2.0? China gives Pakistan cold shoulder on new major investments

Ahead of Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif's China trip, officials in Islamabad had claimed that an upgraded version of CPEC would be formally launched in Beijing

Taiwan slams China and Pakistan on misinterpretation of UN resolution 2758

According to Focus Taiwan, MOFA issued a press release Monday stating that resolution 2758 only addresses the issue of China's representation in the United Nations and does not mention Taiwan at all

Will send 1K students to China for agriculture training: Pakistan PM Sharif

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced sending as many as 1,000 students of the country to China for advanced training in the agriculture sector as it strives to increase output, according to a media report on Sunday. The premier, who concluded his five-day official visit to China, made the announcement during a visit to Yangling Agricultural Demonstration Base in Xi'an city on Saturday, Radio Pakistan reported. The 72-year-old also invited China's North West Agriculture and Forestry University to open a campus in Pakistan. He directed the Pakistan ambassador to China and relevant authorities to finalise the matters with the Chinese authorities in this regard, Geo News reported. The prime minister toured various parts of the facility and was shown Pakistani products at the Pakistan Pavilion, the report said. Sharif also visited the modern plant production factory where he oversaw a demonstration of the vertical method of agriculture, it said. Pakistan is striving to

China more important than IMF? Why Pak PM postponed Budget to visit Beijing

Presenting the Budget is critical for Pakistan to finalise a fresh IMF deal

China, Pakistan pledge to safeguard CPEC against critics and opponents

Pakistan and China on Friday vowed to protect the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) from its "detractors and adversaries", as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang and assured Beijing of providing complete security to Chinese personnel working on the USD 65 billion project. Sharif is currently on a visit to China at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, seeking to upgrade cooperation under the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a key part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative. In a statement, the Pakistan Prime Minister's Office said during the meeting, the two sides discussed the significance of Gwadar as an important pillar of the CPEC and agreed to expedite the timely completion of all related infrastructure projects to transform Gwadar in Balochistan province into a regional economic hub. "They also expressed their firm commitment to protect CPEC from its detractors and adversaries and to upgrade CPEC in the form of

'Attack controlled from Afghanistan': Pak on death of 5 Chinese engineers

An attack on a convoy in the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on March 26 led to the death of five Chinese engineers

Jinping greets Zardari; says close China-Pakistan ties 'choice of history'

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday congratulated Asif Ali Zardari on his election as the Pakistan President, saying that the iron-clad friendship between the two countries is a choice of history and the strategic significance of the ties has become more prominent in the light of current changes in the world. Zardari, the husband of late Pakistan Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto was overwhelmingly elected as the 14th President of Pakistan on Saturday, becoming the only civilian president of the coup-prone country for a second time. Zardari, the co-chairperson of the Pakistan Peoples Party, was the joint candidate of the ruling alliance of the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). In his message to Zardari on Sunday, Xi said "China and Pakistan are good neighbours, good friends, good partners and good brothers, adding that the two countries' iron-clad friendship is a choice of history and a precious treasure of the two peoples." Xi said that "the two countries have in .

China lends over $21 bn more than previously thought to Pakistan: Report

A major portion - $ 28.4 billion of China's loan to Pakistan was in the energy sector, according to the data found by AidData

98% of China's aid to Pak is in form of less-than-generous loans: Report

As much as 98 per cent of China's development funding for its all-weather ally Pakistan came in the form of less-than-generous loans, with only two per cent coming in the form of grants between 2000 and 2021, according to a research report. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a global infrastructure and investment initiative by Beijing, was launched in 2013. It is thought to be the largest partnership of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It increased to over USD 62 billion over time, and at least USD 25 billion was invested in cash-strapped Pakistan. Out of the total Chinese development finance portfolio of USD 70.3 billion, committed between 2000 and 2021 in Pakistan, eight per cent was official development assistance (grants and highly concessional loans) and 89 per cent was other official sector loans, said a report in The News International, quoting AidData, a US-based research lab. With USD 14.0 billion in finance commitments, 2017 was the top year for Pakistan;

China, Pak to ink key agreements under CPEC during caretaker PM's visit

China and Pakistan will ink significant agreements regarding motorways and highways during caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar's four-day visit to Beijing starting Monday, according to a media report on Sunday. The agreements would be signed under the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) programme, Dawn newspaper reported. Kakar would travel to Beijing on October 16 to participate in the Third Belt and Road Forum (BRF) for International Cooperation' from October 17 to 18. The prime minister will attend the opening ceremony of the BRF and address the high-level forum entitled 'Connectivity in an Open Global Economy', the PM office said in a post on X on Saturday. A significant Memorandum of Understanding scheduled to be signed is related to the establishment of a modern Highway Research and Training Centre (HRTC) with China's assistance, the paper said. The project will prominently take centre stage during the prime minister's discussion with the Chinese .

'Pakistan, China to invite 3rd parties to participate in CPEC projects'

Pakistan and China have agreed to invite third parties to participate in the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which is a key part of Beijing's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, a top Pakistani diplomat has said. Pakistan's state-run Associated Press of Pakistan reported that the country's ambassador to China Moinul Haque told China's official CCTV on Sunday that the two countries are now working to extend CPEC to Afghanistan. India firmly opposes the CPEC, which will link Xinjiang in China and the Gwadar port in Pakistan, because it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan's Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of China's ambitious multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI is seen as an attempt by China to further its influence abroad with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments all over the world. In his comments, the Pakistani envoy said the CP

Pakistan PM Sharif invites Turkey to join China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Wednesday invited Turkey to join the ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), turning it into a trilateral arrangement so that all three friendly nations could benefit from its potential. Sharif made the remarks at the launch ceremony of a fourth MILGEM class corvette warship PNS Tariq, which was inducted into the Pakistan Navy fleet at a ceremony at the Karachi Shipyard. Initiated in 2018, the MILGEM project envisaged the construction of four corvettes for the Pakistan Navy - two in Pakistan and two in Turkey. Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz was also present at the ceremony. Renewing his last year's invitation to Turkey to join the CPEC, Shehbaz said turning the multi-billion dollar infrastructure project into a trilateral arrangement would bring regional prosperity and empower people through the best facilities, including education and health. I think all three nations can benefit from the potential of the CPEC which has be

China rolls over $2.4 billion loan to its key ally, cash-strapped Pakistan

China has rolled over a USD 2.4 billion loan to its all-weather ally Pakistan for two years to help the cash-strapped country shore up its foreign exchange reserves, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Thursday. Dar said in a Twitter post that Pakistan was supposed to pay the loan in the next two fiscal years. "Chinese EXIM Bank has rolled over for 2 years principal amounts of following loans totalling US$ 2.4 billion which are due in next 2 fiscal years: FY2023-24: US$1.2 billion FY2024-25: US$ 1.2 billion," he said. "Pakistan will make interest payments only in both years," he added. The development comes a little over a week after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced that China had rolled over a USD 600 million loan to Pakistan to help its ailing economy. This was in addition to over USD 5 billion in loans that China had rolled over for Pakistan in the last three months to help its key ally avert a default as negotiations to secure the IMF bailout dragged on. China has time