Ahsan Iqbal, Pakistan's Federal Minister of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, has hailed the unique and enduring friendship between Pakistan and China, highlighting that bilateral relations continue to thrive on the foundations of mutual respect and trust, as well as extensive cooperation.
Speaking ahead of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's visit to China on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries, Iqbal stressed that the Pakistan-China partnership is built on mutual respect and trust, with both countries consistently standing together in the international arena.
The minister recalled China's timely assistance during Pakistan's acute energy crisis in the 2010s, when few investors were willing to step in.
"Pakistan will never forget that China helped Pakistan with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor at a time when Pakistan was facing acute energy shortages. No investor was willing to come to Pakistan at that time. China chose to invest in the energy sector of Pakistan and helped Pakistan fight load shedding, power shortages. And with China, we also built modern infrastructure under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor," said Iqbal.
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), one of the most important cooperation project between the two countries, has improved local infrastructure and optimized energy supply, bringing socio-economic development in Pakistan, the minister said.
Launched in 2013 as the flagship of the Belt and Road Initiative, CPEC has made substantial progress over the years, moving from blueprints to power plants and ports. It profoundly transformed Pakistan's economic landscape, reshaping its connectivity, energy security, and development outlook while deepening its strategic partnership with China.
Now, both sides say the focus is shifting toward "CPEC Phase Two".
Iqbal also mentioned the importance of the extensive bilateral cooperation across various sectors, including space missions.
"A Pakistani astronaut will go to space in a Chinese space mission and will be the first international astronaut to enter the Chinese space station. We have recently launched, in two years, six satellites in orbit with the help of China, so Pakistan-China friendship has now gone to the skies and it has no limits, and we are very proud to have a very trusted, strong brother like China," he said.
Pakistani minister hails unique, enduring friendship with China
Pakistani minister hails unique, enduring friendship with China
Khaled El-Enany, director-general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), has spoke highly of China's support for multilateralism, intercultural dialogue and global cooperation, while expressing readiness to deepen UNESCO's partnership with China in areas including digital education and peace building.
El-Enany visited China's Hangzhou, Beijing and Shanghai from May 11 to 14, his fourth time in the country and first time as the UNESCO director-general.
In an interview with the China Media Group (CMG), El-Enany spoke positively about his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 12, saying their discussions focused on people, intercultural dialogue, the Global South and multilateralism.
"There were the focus of our exchange -- people. We are here to serve people. Peace in the minds of women and men. Intercultural dialogue [was another topic]. We have to learn from each other and to learn, we have to dialogue. We have to listen to each other, to know each other, to accept each other, and this is the spirit of UNESCO. [We also talked about] Global South. How we can support the Global South, how can reduce the divides between people. And multilateralism that we must defend," El-Enany said.
The UNESCO chief also highlighted digital education as a key for future cooperation between China and the organization.
"[We also talked about] some fields of new partnership, mainly on the field of digital education. This is very important part because while many parts of the world are really doing an exceptional advancement in the AI use, other are still behind," said El-Enany.
Speaking about his impression of Xi, El-Enany described the meeting as warm and sincere, saying he gained a deeper understanding of the Chinese president beyond his role as a political leader.
"I knew the politician, the great leader he is. But yesterday I discovered the human being behind. It was a very warm meeting. It was a very sincere exchange. I saw that he was speaking from his heart. It's a pure conviction that we need to dialogue, that we need to learn from each other. He was very keen to defend the multilateralism. He expressed clearly his support to UNESCO, to UNESCO's mandate in peace building and to bring people together. It was a very warm meeting. I learned a lot and I'm very determined to enhance now our partnership with China based on what was discussed with his excellence, Mr. President," said the UNESCO chief.
UNESCO chief praises China's support for multilateralism, intercultural dialogue, global cooperation
