Pakistan, China agree on strengthening ties to overcome economic challenges

Pakistan and China have agreed on strengthening bilateral economic and commercial ties to overcome the headwinds generated due to the negative impact of coronavirus on the global economy.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said that PM Imran Khan held a telephonic conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping and congratulated Xi on the centenary of the Communist Party of China.

The statement said that both leaders felicitated each other on the important milestone of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

During their phone call, the two leaders reviewed the entire gamut of the bilateral strategic cooperative partnership, and also discussed the regional and international situation. The PM lauded the 'successful, timely and high-quality' implementation of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects, and welcomed Chinese investments in the CPEC Special Economic Zones.

"He underscored that early start of work on the ML-1 railway project would complement Pakistan’s geo-economics vision for national and regional development," the PMO statement said.