China and Pakistan sign 15 MoUs for cooperation in various fields<\/p>\n
BEIJING
\nChina has agreed to \u201cfirmly move forward\u201d on various infrastructure projects in Pakistan following a meeting between Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Chinese counterpart, Li Keqiang, on Saturday.
\nThe agreement follows concerns that Islamabad\u2019s spiralling financial crisis could lead Beijing to scale back its projects in the country, where it is helping to build the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Project (CPEC).
\nThe project is at the heart of Chinese President Xi Jinping\u2019s Belt and Road Initiative, an ambitious, globe-spanning trade and infrastructure programme.
\nThe massive undertaking has drawn both praise and criticism from around the world, with some saying the initiative is filling a critical funding gap in the developing world, while others fear the Chinese loans financing the work are designed to entrap their recipients in debt.
\nIn Pakistan, Belt-and-Road-linked projects have come in for heavy criticism for their opaque lending terms, with some arguing that Beijing\u2019s largesse may worsen Islamabad\u2019s fiscal dilemma.
\nBut both Pakistan and China played down those concerns on Saturday, describing the programme as a key part of Islamabad\u2019s recovery plans.
\nIn his meeting with Li, Khan invited the Chinese premier to visit Pakistan and see for himself the difference the mega-project has made in the country.
\n\u201cCPEC in 2013 was just an idea. Now it is on the ground. And it has caught the imagination of the people of Pakistan,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cWe feel that this a great opportunity for our country to progress, to attract investment. It gives us an opportunity to raise our standard of living, growth rate.\u201d
\nLi praised the relationship, saying \u201cChina and Pakistan are all-weather partners\u201d.
\n\u201cPakistan has always been regarded as a foreign policy priority by China.\u201d
\n15 MoUs signed between China and Pakistan
\nAbout 15 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for cooperation between China and Pakistan in multiple fields were signed in Beijing by officials of both countries, RadioPak reported.
\nPrime Minister Khan and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang overlooked the signing ceremony, that was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
\nBoth countries pledged to cooperate in various fields, including forestry, earth sciences, agriculture as well as in the industrial sector.
\nThe neighbouring countries also agreed to work together to alleviate poverty in Pakistan as well as to ensure the provision of technical training to potential labour.
\nThe Chinese Academy of Science also signed MoUs with the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan and Pakistan Meteorological Department.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
China and Pakistan sign 15 MoUs for cooperation in various fields BEIJING China has agreed to \u201cfirmly move forward\u201d on various infrastructure projects in Pakistan following a meeting between Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Chinese counterpart, Li Keqiang, on Saturday. The agreement follows concerns that Islamabad\u2019s spiralling financial crisis could lead Beijing to scale […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":33688,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,4,2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-33680","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-lead-cpec","8":"category-national","9":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n