Shehbaz Sharif greets new Chinese premier Li Qiang

Islamabad: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has congratulated Li Qiang on his election as new Premier of China.

On his Twitter handle, the prime minister said, “I extend my warm congratulations to Li Qiang on his election as new Premier of China.

The PM further said that he was looking forward to working closely with him to further advancing Pakistan-China Strategic Cooperative Partnership.

“I am confident our bilateral relations will enter a new era of cooperation,” he tweeted.

Li Qiang, 63, the former Communist Party chief of Shanghai, took up the country’s second-highest post on Saturday.

The career bureaucrat replaces Li Keqiang, who is retiring after two five-year terms.

Li Qiang was put on track to become premier in October, when he was appointed to the number-two role on the Politburo Standing Committee during the twice-a-decade Communist Party Congress.

He will make his closely watched debut on the international stage on Monday during the prime minister’s traditional media question-and-answer session after the parliamentary session ends.