BEIJING, China: The Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Tuesday said China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would not only contribute to economic development of Pakistan but also have a salutary effect on the development of the region.      

In a meeting with the Vice President of the People’s Republic of China Wang Qishan held in Beijing on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Meeting of the Council of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Foreign Ministers, Khawaja Asif said CPEC, a flagship project of the Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative, was making good progress and several projects had either been completed or were under implementation.

The foreign minister congratulated the Chinese vice president on his recent election to the office, and expressed his confidence that the vice president would continue to play his role in further strengthening the strong and time-tested bilateral relations between Pakistan and China.

FM meeting with the Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan in Beijing pic.twitter.com/5mIC4HO0Ag

— Dr Mohammad Faisal (@DrMFaisal) April 24, 2018

The Chinese vice president stressed that Pakistan-China relations were all weather and a model in inter-state relations. He reaffirmed China’s support to Pakistan’s independence and sovereignty and its counter-terrorism efforts, and said China would continue to contribute to Pakistan’s economic development.

Wang Qishan appreciated Pakistan’s active participation in the SCO and looked forward to participation of the President of Pakistan in the SCO Qingdao Summit to be held in June 2018.

The two leaders agreed to continue strategic communications between Pakistan and China on all issues.

Press release on the outcome of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting

On April 24, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took part in a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Beijing.

The meeting opened the final stage in the preparations for the SCO Heads of State Council Meeting that will take place on June 9-10 in Qingdao, China. The ministers reviewed the progress in the coordination of documents and decisions to be submitted for consideration by the heads of state. The draft Qingdao Declaration of the Heads of State was approved in principle. The document stipulates shared approaches to further promoting the activities of the SCO as it enters a new stage in itis development, including by strengthening its international role.

The meeting participants also approved the drafts of the Action Plan for 2018-2022 on the implementation of the Treaty on Long-Term Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation between the SCO Member States, the Programme of Cooperation among the SCO Member States on Counter-Terrorist, Counter-Separatist and Counter-Extremist Measures for 2019-2021, the joint address by the heads of state to the youth and the action plan to prevent young people from getting involved in destructive groups, as well as a number of other documents designed to enhance cooperation within the organisation in all areas.

The participants in the meeting agreed that it would be advisable to continue to work on other documents within the established framework.

An information statement summarising the meeting has been approved.