CPEC playing a key role in making Pakistan an economic hub: President Alvi

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi Tuesday said India was playing the role of a spoiler for game-changer China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, and making all-out attempts to sabotage it.

In an exclusive interview with the South Asian Strategic Stability Institute (SASSI), a renowned think tank and telecast by PTV, the president said Pakistan had emerged as new hub of economy linked with the Central Asian states, and China providing the shortest route.

“So, Pakistan is becoming an economic hub. Part of that economic hub is the CPEC route. And India, of course, is playing its own role as a spoiler.

“India is acting as a spoiler in Afghanistan, acting as a spoiler in Pakistan Chinese relationship,” the president added.

He said India was a spoiler as it wanted the US and China to drift apart, because India stood to gain economically to fill up the markets from where China was isolated.

“So that strategy is being pursued by India at the cost of international peace, at the cost of international trade,” he added.

CPEC was a vital part of that economic hub with huge international investments, the president said, adding that no country should have concerns over this mega trade project.

The president noted that Pakistan was pursuing a balanced foreign policy which was not tilted in any way.

Pakistan, in accordance with the prime minister’ vision, he said could play a leading role like removing the misgivings between the US and Iran and the US and China.

President Alvi said Indian society was actually falling apart due to the extremist ideology, propagated by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) founders and frantically pursued by the Bharatiya Janata Party through its Hindutva policies.

He said what was happening in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) was a continuous momentum built up for long by whipping up anti-Muslims and anti-minorities policies including forced conversion of Christians by the RSS zealots inside India.

All was done with objectives to rewrite history of India by isolating Muslims and excluding the Muslim era and their contributions by labelling them as something bad for Hindus or India, he added.

“What we do when we talk about Kashmir, it is not Kashmir alone, it is the momentum of whatever has been happening in India, which has been anti Muslim, which has been anti-minorities, not only Muslims, but all minorities,” he added. Dr Arif Alvi expressed his confidence that the incoming US president would play his role in the resolution of Kashmir dispute. “The hope is that the incoming president of the United States, Joe Biden has talked about that we are watching and we are seeing, including the Vice President, she has made a statement that we are watching what is happening in Kashmir,” he added.

The president expressed confidence that Pakistan would overcome the second Covid-19 wave in the manner it had faced the first wave.