Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan brought along with him a huge delegation to Beijing as he prepares to seek more funds from Chinese president Xi Jinping to bolster economic growth.
According to Pakistan news agencies, Khan was received by China’s deputy foreign minister Wu Jianghao, Chinese envoy to Pakistan Wu Jie and Pakistan envoy to Beijing Moinul Haq. His huge delegation included foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, finance minister Shaukat Tarin, planning minister Asad Umar, information minister Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan national security advisor Moeed Yusuf, commerce advisor Abdul Razak Dawood and special assistant on China- Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Khalid Mansoor.
Imran Khan during his meeting will try to convince Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party along with Chinese companies to invest in Pakistan’s Special Economic Zone and relocate Chinese industries to those locations. He also ordered the removal of 37 regulations as a part of bureaucratic red tape removal in a bid to foster Chinese investment. Beijing invested $25 billion in Pakistan on CPEC. Pakistan is also aiming to lure Chinese investment in its soil with assurances of cheap labour and providing trade routes and cheaper freight operations to the European Union as well to North America.
Pakistan NSA Yusuf added that the Afghanistan issue will also be discussed between both leaders in order to find measures to mitigate the crisis.
Pakistan is also seeking a $3 billion loan to replenish its foreign exchange reserves, according to a separate report by news agency The Express Tribune. China already granted loans worth $11 billion in the shape of commercial loans and foreign exchange reserves support initiatives. It has also given $4 billion to Pakistan which is currently stored in Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) deposits.
Imran Khan is among the handful of leaders who will visit China to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics. The move is largely being seen by international observers as China’s attempt to display its rise in front of the entire world. Russian president Vladimir Putin, Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman, Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyhan of the United Arab Emirates, Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Serbia’s Aleksandar Vucic are also among world leaders visiting Beijing.
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