Pakistan’s army chief meets Chinese officials, discusses training, technology and counterterrorism

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa led a top-level delegation of his country’s armed forces in talks with senior Chinese military officials on Sunday, said an official statement circulated by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
The Pakistani tri-service military delegation landed in China on Thursday to hold wide-ranging discussions with senior officials of Chinese military and other government departments on Thursday.
The two countries are close allies who have always cherished close defense and strategic relationship. They have also been working on a multibillion-dollar economic corridor project to ensure infrastructure development in Pakistan along with greater regional connectivity.
“Apex Meeting was held on 12 June wherein Pakistani side was headed by Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa while Chinese side was led by General Zhang Youxia Vice Chairman Central Military Commission of China,” the ISPR said in its statement. “Both sides discussed their perspectives on international and regional security situation, and expressed satisfaction on defense cooperation between the two countries.”
The statement added that officials of the two countries reaffirmed their strategic partnership in challenging geopolitical times while agreeing to continue regular exchange of perspectives on issues of mutual interest.
“Both sides also vowed to enhance their training, technology and counterterrorism cooperation at tri-service level,” said the statement.
Pakistan and China have in the past also expressed concern over the problem of militancy in the region.
More recently, Chinese nationals working on various projects in Pakistan have been targeted by Baloch separatist groups.
The two countries have also been closely collaborating in the economic field. Pakistan has also sought financial assistance from Beijing amid a yawning current account deficit and dwindling foreign exchange reserves.