ISLAMABAD: China is paying close attention to the situation in Kashmir and wants a peaceful resolution of the dispute between the two South Asian nuclear-armed nations, said a Pakistan-China joint press statement on Wednesday while providing details of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s two-day visit to Beijing.
The Pakistani leader left for Islamabad after concluding his visit to China where he was invited by his counterpart Li Keqiang. During his stay in Beijing, the prime minister also met President Xi Jinping and interacted with Chinese business community.
According to the joint statement, leaders of the two countries agreed “that a peaceful, stable, cooperative and prosperous South Asia was in the common interest of all parties.”
“Parties need to settle disputes and issues in the region through dialogue on the basis of equality and mutual respect,” it added.
The Pakistani delegation also underscored that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a transformational project. The two countries agreed that the second CPEC phase would promote industrial and socio-economic development in the South Asian state.
Pakistani officials told the Chinese authorities that the Gwadar Port had been given various facilities since the government wanted to make it the region’s trade and logistical hub.
The two sides also expressed determination to speedily execute CPEC projects to make the corridor a high-quality demonstration for China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
China and Pakistan also reviewed the “excellent” bilateral defense cooperation and agreed to strengthen it further “in the areas of military exercises, training cooperation, personnel exchanges, and equipment and technology cooperation.”
The two countries reaffirmed their commitment to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and called on all countries to strengthen international cooperation on counterterrorism.
China appreciated Pakistan’s efforts and sacrifices in countering terrorism, asking “the international community to objectively recognize Pakistan’s contributions to regional peace and security through its success in fight against terrorism.”
The two sides also underlined that educational links between them were becoming stronger.
“Prime Minister Imran Khan thanked Chinese leadership for providing opportunities to Pakistani students to study in China. He hoped that those students will play an important role in further deepening historic and deep-rooted ties between the two iron brothers,” the statement added.
Chinese authorities say Beijing paying close attention to Kashmir situation
Chinese authorities say Beijing paying close attention to Kashmir situation
- As Prime Minister Khan concludes his visit, the two countries praise bilateral defense cooperation, agree to strengthen it further
- The second CPEC phase will promote industrial and socio-economic development in Pakistan, says joint statement
Hundreds of migrants, including Pakistanis, land in Greece after search operation at sea
- Rescued migrants were taken to a temporary facility on Crete after reaching the port of Agia Galini
- Greece has made deportations of rejected asylum seekers a priority under its migration policy
ATHENS: Greece’s Coast Guard rescued about 540 migrants from a fishing boat off Europe’s southernmost island of Gavdos on Friday, one of the biggest groups to reach the country in recent months.
The migrants were found during a Greek search operation some 16 nautical miles (29.6 km) off Gavdos, a Coast Guard statement said. They are all well and are being taken to a temporary facility on the nearby island of Crete after reaching the port of Agia Galini, a Coast Guard official said, adding most of the migrants were men from Bangladesh, Egypt and Pakistan.
In a separate incident on Thursday, the EU’s border agency Frontex rescued 65 men and five women from two migrant boats in distress off Gavdos, the Greek Coast Guard said.
Greece was on the front line of a 2015-16 migration crisis when more than a million people from the Middle East and Africa landed on its shores before moving on to other European countries, mainly Germany.
Flows have ebbed since then, but both Crete and Gavdos — the two Mediterranean islands nearest to the African coast — have seen a steep rise in migrant boats, mainly from Libya, reaching their shores over the past year and deadly accidents remain common along that route.
Greece, Cyprus, Spain and Italy will be eligible for help in dealing with migratory pressures under a new EU mechanism when the bloc’s pact on migration and asylum enters into force in mid-2026.
The center-right government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said deportation of rejected asylum seekers will be a priority.
