Pakistan, China pledge new era of stronger ties
By Makhdoom Babar

ISLAMABAD—President General Pervez Musharraf and President Hu Jintao Thursday pledged to build on a robust and time-tested friendship between Pakistan and China and expand their strategic partnership as the Chinese leader began a four-day visit to the South Asian country.
Speaking at a banquet President Musharraf hosted in the honour of the Chinese President at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, the two leaders described Pakistan-China ties as an example of good neighbourly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, the Chairman Senate, Speaker National Assembly, members of Federal Cabinet, Services Chiefs and Chief Justice of Pakistan attended the banquet. “Friendly ties between Pakistan and China is a shining example of good neighbourly relations. Our friendship has remained constant and unchanged regardless of the transformed global circumstances,” President Musharraf said in remarks to welcome his Chinese counterpart.
The visit, he added, was “another milestone in the closer friendship and cooperative partnership between Pakistan and China”. President Musharraf said a strong faith and trust in each other form the bedrock of bilateral relations, which the two countries have nurtured with care and devotion.
Chinese President, reciprocating the sentiments, said his country was proud to have in Pakistan a great and true friend, and paid tributes to the leaders of the older generation in both countries, who laid the solid foundations for promoting China-Pakistan friendship.
“Let us build on past achievement and strengthen traditional friendship, advanced with the time, expand and enrich China-Pakistan strategic partnership so that our friendship will pass on from generation to generation”, President Hu Jintao said. He said Pakistan-China relations stood as an example of “friendly co-existence and mutually beneficial cooperation between countries with different social systems.
“We are good neighbours, close friends, trusted partners and dear brothers”. He praised Pakistani people for working with perseverance and in a pioneering spirit to uphold national dignity and sovereignty and achieve great progress in development. “In the new century, the Pakistani people, rallying under the leadership of President Musharraf, have effectively responded to serious and complex developments, both at home and internationally and made remarkable accomplishment in maintaining social stability and promoting economic development and ethnic harmony”.
President Musharraf acknowledged and expressed his gratitude to the steadfast support China has extended to Pakistan in all domains. “There are many important symbols of this cooperation; the Karakorm Highway, Gwadar Port and the Chashma Power Plant are only a few of the projects that we have completed with your help”, he said.
President Musharraf noted convergence of interests of the two countries on the global and regional levels and commonality of approach to advance the international agenda for peace and prosperity.
In this context, the President thanked China’s invaluable support to Pakistan for admission to the Asia Europe Meeting and welcomed Beijing’s association with SAARC as an observer. “Our comprehensive cooperation and robust partnership is in the fundamental interest of our peoples and conducive to peace, progress and stability of Asia.
“We are committed to upholding the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, respecting diversity and promoting democracy in international relations,” he added. President Musharraf said international security cooperation should be based on mutual trust and addressing concerns through consultation and coordination “so that we can jointly respond to threats and challenges to global security”.
Pakistan, he said, desires a peaceful environment in the region in the interest of regional development and to raise the living standards of the peoples of the two countries.
Consistent with this aspiration, the President said, Pakistan seeks peaceful resolution of all issues with India including the longstanding Jammu and Kashmir dispute. “Success in this endeavor would usher in a new era of peace and prosperity in South Asia,” he added.
Similarly, a stable Afghanistan will open up vast opportunities for Pakistan and indeed for the regional countries, the President said. “Pakistan has fully supported every international effort for peace and stability in Afghanistan,” he added.
President Musharraf also called for an earliest restoration of sovereignty in Iraq and implementation of the Roadmap for peace in the Middle East. He said history and circumstances have placed Pakistan in the forefront of the global fight against terrorism and expressed a firm resolve to fight this grave threat of the present time.
The President lauded China for its contribution to global peace and development. “Its (China) moral voice in international affairs and its efforts to uphold principles of equity and justice are a source of strength for the developing countries,” he added. Pakistan applauds and support China’s efforts to create a harmonious world, the President said. President Musharraf, praising China’s spectacular economic growth, said it was a source of inspiration for all developing countries.
“As a neighbour and longstanding friend, we rejoice in your achievements and seek ever-closer and comprehensive economic cooperation for mutual benefit,” the President said. On the occasion, the President underlined Pakistan’s strategic location at the confluence of South Asia, the Gulf region and Central Asia.
Pakistan wants to leverage this unique location for beneficial economic and trade interaction between there regions and for Pakistan to become a hub of trade and communication activity, the President said.
Pakistan, he added, has also offered energy corridors from the Gulf and Central Asia for supply of gas to Pakistan, India and China. He recalled the deep-rooted friendship between peoples of Pakistan and China, which has a long history of rich interaction spreading over two millennium.
Despite having different systems and cultures, he said the two countries have weaved together all strands of their relations into a beautiful mosaic. The two countries, he added, share idealism for a safe, secure and prosperous neighborhood with their regions, free from strife and conflict, and a world embracing peace, harmony and understanding. “We want this vision to be translated into reality,” the President said.
President Musharraf extended a warm welcome to the distinguished guest as the year 2006 marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Pakistan and China. “Your visit to Pakistan is a high point of these celebrations and a befitting tribute to the all-weather and time-tested friendship that exists between our two peoples,” the President added.
He recalled his two visits to China this year and expressed the confidence that these and President Hu Jintao’s visit, would help their countries chart a “clear trajectory of Pakistan-China partnership in the 21st century”.

— set to sign landmark accords

ISLAMABAD—Pakistan and China are set to sign a raft of agreements and Memorandums of Understanding on Friday to develop their socio-economic partnership in various sectors.
The signing ceremony will be held at Aiwan-e- Sadr in presence of the visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao and President Pervez Musharraf, following delegation-level talks and one-to-one meeting between the two leaders. “The two sides have completed necessary spadework to ink some landmark documents,” said Pakistan ambassador to China Salman Bashir.
Talking to reporters here Thursday he said the high- profile visit would give a new impetus to Sino-Pak friendship, generating more business activities between the two countries, both at public and private levels. “We are going to take some concrete measures to enhance volume of bilateral trade and economic collaboration in the fields of industry, agriculture, energy,” he said.
A Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will be the highly important document to be signed. The two sides had completed the negotiations on the FTA in a record short time after starting the process in August last year. The agreement will cut tariffs to zero rates on hundreds of items for import and export between the two countries.
“We are expecting to take volume of bilateral trade to dollar 15 billion within next five years, with the implementation of the FTA,” Salman Bashir said. The two countries will sign a five-year plan of economic cooperation to put in place a comprehensive structural framework for boosting and economic ties.
The five-year plan will cover all fields of bilateral interest. Pakistan will be the first country with whom China will enter into such an arrangement, the Ambassador said. This will be a unique document of economic collaboration, he added.
The two sides will also sign a agreement for setting up a joint investment company, which will provide an institutional mechanism for financial support to the private sector for undertaking joint ventures. Under another agreement, the two countries will collaborate in expanding Saindek mining project in Balochistan.
To a question about cooperation in the energy sector, the Ambassador said this would be done under a general framework agreement signed between the two countries in February this year.
Under the framework, Pakistan and China have also agreed to initiate studies to build an energy corridor for China providing access to oil and gas resources of Central and Western Asia, including development of oil refining and storage in coastal areas of Pakistan. Pakistan’s coal and lignite resources for increasing domestic energy supplies and for power generation through cleaner coal technologies promote development of renewable energy resources, capacity building in hydrocarbon research and development.
The plan will encourage private sector as well as financial institutions of both countries to participate in energy cooperation for realizing joint ventures and investment. Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said the agreements between public and private sectors would further strengthen bilateral economic, social and cultural relations, enhance trade and pave the way  for more Chinese investment in Pakistan. for realizing joint ventures and investment. Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said the agreements between public and private sectors would further strengthen bilateral economic, social and cultural relations, enhance trade and pave the way for more Chinese investment in Pakistan.
Chinese President Hu Jintao four-day state visit to Pakistan starting from Thursday is a milestone, significant and very important. The Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu in the regular press briefing here on Thursday said that this visit would further deepen our strategic cooperative partnership. She said that the visit would also help further consolidating our traditional friendship. Both the countries, she said were continuously pushing forward cooperation in various fields for mutual benefit of both the countries.
A very warm welcome was accorded to the Chinese President Hu Jintao Thursday as he began his four-day official visit to Pakistan to further deepen the “all-weather relations” the two countries enjoy.
Red carpet was rolled out as President General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz along with their spouses greeted the distinguished guest at the Chaklala Air Base. “I am visiting Pakistan to deepen friendship, expand cooperation and plan for the future of our relationship,” President Hu Jintao said in an arrival statement. A 21-gun salute boomed as the Chinese President alighted from the special Air China 747-400 plane.
The Chinese President who brings with him a large delegation is expected to ink a number of agreements following talks with President General Pervez Musharraf on Friday. “I look forward to having in-depth exchange of views with President Musharraf and other Pakistani leaders on bilateral relations as well as international and regional issues of mutual interest,” the President said. He said China and Pakistan are “good neighbours, close friends, trusted partners and dear brothers.” China and Pakistan have fostered all-weather friendship and enjoyed comprehensive cooperation in the 55 years since forging of diplomatic relations.
“As history has shown, China-Pakistan friendship meet the fundamental interests and shared aspirations of our countries and peoples and contributes to peace, stability and prosperity of our region,” President Hu Jintao’s statement said.
The visiting dignitary will also meet public representatives and expects to “consolidate China-Pakistan traditional friendship and usher in a new stage of China-Pakistan relations.”
President Hu Jintao was presented bouquets by two children attired in national dress.—APP