Seminar titled ‘71 years of Pakistan-China friendship’ held, Pakistan-China relationship highlighted
Islamabad: A seminar titled ‘71 years of Pakistan-China friendship’ was held here.
The seminar was organized by Dosti FM Channel where eminent scholars and academics shed light on ever growing Pakistan-China relationship.
Speaking at the seminar, former Ambassador of Pakistan to China Masood Khalid said Pakistan should take advantage of Chinese expertise in science and technology to be on track with a knowledge economy.
He maintained that Pakistan-China friendship was a unique account of unwavering mutual support, trust and respect. He mentioned that Pakistan-China relations are based on strong foundation and this relation has been turned into deep rooted strategic partnership between the two countries.
Vice Chancellor National Skills University Muhammad Mukhtar, in his remarks, called for learning from Chinese to elevate our education system for sustainable development. He contended that Pakistan-China friendship provides us an opportunity to promote skill development.
Speaking to the audience, Associate Professor of Iqra University, Dr Ejaz Hussain argued that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was grounded in market connectivity, foreign investment, global trade and cultural and educational cooperation.
He noted that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a unique part of the BRI based on bilateralism. “CPEC needs to be expanded like other economic corridors under the BRI. CPEC can be expanded to Afghanistan within South Asia in order to realize durable peace in that country plus regional stability,” he added.
Moreover, he said, since China has already invested US $400 billion in Iran. The latter can be encouraged by China to join CPEC too – this would be another way to expand CPEC. UAE and Saudi Arabia also recently expressed interest to invest in CPEC.
Dr Ejaz Hussain further stated that China and Pakistan need to encounter the said Gulf countries to take practical measures in this respect.
He underscored that one of BRI’s lesson for Pakistan was to engage major economic stakeholders such as EU, ASEAN. Pakistan’s survival lies in geoeconomics which must be promoted through media and economic diplomacy.
Political Scientist Dr. Shafqat Munir was of the view that peace and stability is a prerequisite to bring business to the country. He said “we should fight against extremism and terrorism.” He said peace in Afghanistan is imperative for prosperity of Pakistan. Other panelists include Fouzia Shahid, Syed Paras Ali, Dr Talat Bashir, Riaz Ahmed Malik and Dr Noor Fatima.
