Ishaq Dar to visit China next week for strategic dialogue

ISLAMABAD– Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar will visit Beijing from May 13 to 16, where he will meet with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi to discuss how to expedite the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and future connectivity initiatives while enhancing economic and trade cooperation.

Dar, who was recently named as deputy prime minister, will co-chair the fifth China-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue, which will include a comprehensive review of bilateral relations, with a particular emphasis on CPEC upgrade.

Yi also serves as the Director General of the Communist Party of China’s Foreign Affairs Commission.

The two presidents will also discuss the evolving regional geopolitical situation and bilateral collaboration at multilateral fora, according to a Foreign Office press statement.

Dar is due to meet with Chinese authorities and top corporate executives during the strategic dialogue.

It is part of Pakistan’s regular high-level exchanges with China. It reflects the importance the two countries place on deepening the “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership,” reaffirming mutual support on core issues, expanding economic and trade cooperation, including CPEC, and reinforcing joint commitment to regional peace and development.

Lin Jian, spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, stated during a routine media briefing on Friday that “China is willing to work with the Pakistani side to take this visit as an opportunity to further implement the important consensus of the two countries’ leaders.”

Lin stated that the China-Pakistan friendship has grown stronger over time as both nations worked together to deal with changes in the world and regional circumstances, resulting in deeper mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation.

“The Chinese side was willing to carry forward the traditional friendship between China and Pakistan, strengthen strategic communication and coordination, deepen practical cooperation in various fields and create an upgraded version of the construction of CPEC [China-Pakistan Economic Corridor].”

He emphasized China’s determination to strengthen the China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative cooperation and accelerate the establishment of a tighter community of destiny between the two nations in the new age.