Snowed in: Pak-China border closed for trade a month ahead of schedule

GILGIT:

Heavy snowfall at Khunjerab Pass in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) has forced the Pak-China border to be closed down a month ahead of the set schedule, bringing trade activities to a standstill.

An official of the G-B Chamber of Commerce and Industry told The Express Tribune the closure will be effective from Sunday onwards.

The Pak-China border usually closes on December 31 every year and reopens on May 1, as part of an agreement (border protocol) signed in 1985 by both countries. The agreement was signed in view of the climatic conditions of the mountainous region through which bilateral trade activities take place.

A major chunk of the Karakoram Highway (KKH), which connects Pakistan with China via G-B, received heavy snow this week forcing traffic suspension before the scheduled closure.

“Pakistan-China border was formally closed on Sunday for the next five months,” said an official in Sost, the last Pakistani town before the boundary line.

According to local traders, the last consignment of goods from China reached Sost Dry Port on Sunday, to be transported to elsewhere in Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 2^nd, 2013.