Red-carpet welcome: Zardari arrives in Urumqi to participate in China-Eurasia Expo

The president will also meet Chinese vice premier.

URUMQI:


President Asif Ali Zardari received a red-carpet welcome when he arrived here on Tuesday on a three-day visit to China to participate in the first China-Eurasia Expo being held in Urumqi.

Upon arrival at the Urumqi airport, the president was received by the vice governor of Xinjiang province. Pakistan’s Ambassador to China Masood Khan and other officials from the Pakistan embassy were also present at the airport to receive the president.

The president, besides attending the expo, will meet the Chinese Vice Premier Li Kequang during the visit. He will also hold meetings with Chinese corporate leaders to discuss the prospects of enhanced Pakistan-China trade and investment cooperation in diverse fields.

Besides attending the opening ceremony of China-Eurasia Expo 2011, the president will address the China-Eurasia Forum on Economic Development and Cooperation on Thursday.

He will also visit the Pakistani pavilion being set up at the expo.


The first China-Eurasia expo, which will replace the former Urumqi Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Fair, is expected to be a platform for diplomacy between China and the Eurasian states.

Ambassador Masood Khan said that Pakistan, owing to its territorial and historic linkages with Xinjiang, could benefit from the fast development of the region.

He said that President Zardari had a vision for regional economic development through enhanced connectivity. He said that the president’s participation in the expo and the key-note address during the China-Eurasia Forum on Economic Development and Cooperation would provide him with a good opportunity to share his thoughts on regional economic integration.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 31st,  2011.



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