Interconnection
One Belt One Road brings clean and cheap green energy to Pakistan
Seetao 2023-03-20 09:25
  • Karot hydropower station has greatly changed the situation of local power shortage
  • Over the past ten years, the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has won the support and support of the Pakistani people
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2023 is the tenth anniversary of the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. In the past ten years, China has made great efforts to build a community with a shared future for mankind and achieved many achievements. This concept is becoming more and more popular in the international community.

Pakistani President Alvi: I think China has made great efforts for world peace, this is the first point. Secondly, speaking of Chinese history, during the COVID-19 pandemic, I visited China to meet with President Xi Jinping, and I had a very pleasant conversation with him at the banquet. At the banquet, President Xi told me that in history, China built the Great Wall for self-defense, not to invade other countries, let alone start a war. This is China's consistent position. The concept of a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by President Xi is of great significance to the whole world. It is different from other countries’ cooperation based on their own interests. I think it is a concept based on peace. Great contribution to the cause of human peace. President Xi proposed to build the Belt and Road Initiative and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. These are important efforts under the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind. They are interlinked and help realize this vision.

China-Pakistan Corridor bears fruit

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor starts in Kashgar, China, and ends in Gwadar Port, Pakistan, with a total length of 3,000 kilometers. This trade corridor, including highways, railways, oil and gas and optical cable channels, is connected to the Silk Road Economic Belt in the north and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road in the south. It is a key hub connecting the North-South Silk Road.

As an important part of the Belt and Road Initiative, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has yielded fruitful results in the past 10 years. Gwadar Port has changed from a small fishing village to the maritime starting point of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor; the Gwadar East Bay Expressway has been opened to traffic, and the transportation of goods between the port and the big cities has become smooth; the first hydropower station on the corridor - Karot Hydropower Station Construction in accordance with Chinese standards has brought clean, cheap and sustainable energy to Pakistan, greatly changing the local power shortage situation.

In the past 10 years, roads, power stations, and special economic zones have been built on this economic corridor, which symbolizes the friendship between China and Pakistan. They have continuously promoted the improvement of local people's livelihood and won the support and support of the Pakistani people.

Alvi: When President Xi Jinping visited Pakistan in 2015, I was serving as a member of the National Assembly. I still remember his speech at that time. It was also in 2015, when the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project was fully promoted, that the first phase of construction focused on the energy sector. Cooperation in the field of energy is necessary because Pakistan faces a serious energy supply gap. Our demand for energy is great, but the supply is very little. Therefore, the focus of cooperation in the first phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is in the energy field. In addition, the two sides have reached extensive consensus in the field of industrial cooperation, including the establishment of special economic zones. There is also cooperation between Gwadar Port and the field of transportation infrastructure to build a road from Kashgar across Pakistan to Gwadar Port. This is a major project that will benefit thousands of years. If goods produced in Xinjiang and other western regions of China are transported by sea, they need to be transported by land first, across the whole of China to the coastal areas, and then can be transported to Asia, Africa and other places. If through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which is an interconnected corridor, goods can enter and exit China through the corridor. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is not only a win-win result for China and Pakistan, but another advantage is that many Central Asian countries, including Afghanistan, also hope to go to sea through Gwadar Port.

Alvi: At present, we are seeking to promote the peace and reconstruction process in Afghanistan, in which China also plays a huge role. Once peace and stability are restored in Afghanistan, China and Pakistan will jointly help it out of its predicament and rebuild its homeland, and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will also play greater value. I think the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will focus on social areas, such as poverty alleviation. We've done a lot of work on this. It can be seen that with the continuous deepening of the friendship between the two countries, the cooperation between the two sides has also progressed very smoothly. We have learned a lot from China during the COVID-19 pandemic. Pakistan is one of the countries in the region that has made the most outstanding achievements in fighting the epidemic. Our fight against the virus has been successful, and our death toll has been low. Thanks to the cooperation with China, Pakistan has mastered how to control the epidemic in the shortest time. The third is the industrial cooperation between the two sides. The first phase of the Gwadar Free Trade Zone has completed investment promotion, and now the second phase of construction is starting. The second phase of the Free Trade Zone has received investment intentions.

Alvi: I think the Pakistani people are very satisfied with the results of the Belt and Road cooperation. China has brought the Belt and Road projects to Africa, the Middle East and other places. Here I would like to emphasize that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor looks forward to the cooperation of all countries, and it is not exclusive. It is not just a cooperation between China and Pakistan, but also welcomes regional cooperation and looks forward to investment from all countries in the world. Pakistan has two important things - labor resources and markets, a huge population of 220 million, a market of 220 million people, and a labor force of 220 million people. If China can effectively participate in the world division of labor and cooperation, China will benefit, and Pakistan will also benefit. Pakistan is a very reliable partner of China. The friendship between the two countries is an iron brotherhood. The friendship between Pakistan and China is higher than the mountains and deeper than the sea. The friendship between the people of Pakistan and China is unparalleled in the world. Although the government has changed several times, the friendship between China and Pakistan has grown stronger over time. I think the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will continue to play a pivotal role in maintaining regional peace. On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, our two countries should join hands to push the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor into the fast lane.Editor/Ma Xue

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