PM Imran reaches China for three-day visit

This is PM Imran's third official tour of the neighbouring country since coming to power

Prime Minister Imran Khan's three-day official visit to Beijing commenced on Tuesday as he reached the Chinese capital to further bolster the strategic relationship between the two countries.

The premier is visiting Beijing on the invitation of Premier of the State Council of the Peoples’ Republic of China Li Keqiang.

This is the PM’s third official tour of the neighbouring country since coming to power last year. He, along with army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, will meet President Xi Jinping and Premier Li on Tuesday evening.

 

On Tuesday morning, members of China’s business community called on PM Imran. Among the top-level businessmen was Lyu Zexiang, chairman of China Gezhouba Group, who expressed interest in cooperation in Pakistan’s energy sector.

Li Qingwen of Long March Tyre, Jiang Xueming of Orient Holdings, and Guo Wenqing of China Metallurgical Group Corporation also met the premier and discussed business opportunities for cooperation in various sectors.

PM Imran is accompanied by a high-level civil and military delegation, including Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid, Planning Minister Khusro Bakhtiar, Board of Investment Chairman Zubair Gilani, and the PM's advisers on commerce and petroleum.



In a statement issued on Monday, the Foreign Office said the Pakistani and Chinese leadership will exchange views on the regional situation, particularly in the aftermath of India’s illegal August 5 move to change the status of Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK).

“The visit of the prime minister is in continuation of the long-established tradition of the leaderships of the two countries meeting regularly and consulting closely on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest,” said a statement issued by the Foreign Office on Monday.

Among other things, the prime minister will apprise the Chinese leadership of the government’s recent decisions to speed up implementation of ongoing projects of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).



There will also be interaction with senior representatives of the Chinese business and corporate sector for deepening bilateral trade, commercial and investment partnership.

The prime minister will also attend the closing ceremony of the Beijing International Horticulture Expo, as the chief guest.