Pakistan, China to support multilateralism

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have agreed to firmly safeguard multilateralism and support the central role of the United Nations (UN) in international affairs.

Both countries expressed their support at the third round of China Pakistan Consultations on the United Nations Affairs on Friday.

The Pakistani side was led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director-General (DG) Usman Iqbal Jadoon whilst the Chinese side by its Department of International Organisations and Conferences DG Yang Tao.

The two sides concurred to strengthen their cooperation at the UN and other multilateral platforms and to support each other on each side’s core and major interests.

They mutually decided to work toward the political and peaceful resolution of regional and international hotspot issues, and jointly safeguard peace and stability of the world, especially in Asia.

Both countries supported the idea to strengthen cooperation on counter-terrorism and peacekeeping in the UN framework by addressing the issue of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

They also decided to support UN peacekeeping operations in a bid to make greater contributions to the maintenance of international and regional peace and security.

Agreeing to consolidate strategic coordination in the field of human rights, both countries decided to jointly oppose double standards and the politicisation of human rights issues, and work for the promotion and protection of all human rights in a cooperative manner.

SUPPORT TO BUSINESS COMMUNITY:

Separately, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Pakistan, Nong Rong, along with Consul General of China at Karachi Li Bijian and his, team visited the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) on Friday and held a meeting with the office-bearers of the federation.

Various subjects pertaining to the economic relations between Pakistan and China particularly in reference to China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) came under discussion during the meeting.

Ambassador Rong shared his views with the house regarding the upcoming online business portal of the Chinese government which will be a good opportunity for the Pakistani business community to get easily connected with their Chinese counterparts. He extended his full support not only of his embassy at Islamabad but also at Consul General Office in Karachi to the business community particularly to the FPCCI.

The FPCCI president requested the Chinese envoy to emphasise strong and constants mutual efforts to eliminate negative air against CPEC and the bilateral trade. He also suggested that China should focus on investing in the people of Pakistan by giving access to the Chinese market. The FPCCI president also expressed his sincerest gratitude to the government of China for donating Covid-19 vaccines to Pakistan.

During the discussion made in the meeting, former president of FPCCI, Mian Anjum Nisar, requested the envoy to extend support to the Pakistani business community in transferring technical knowledge in the field of agriculture.

Chairman of Pak-China Business Council, Sheikh Jawaid Ilyas, pointed out the imbalance in the bilateral trade which is heavily in favour of China. He also encouraged the embassy to coordinate with the FPCCI in identifying relocation of Chinese industries in Pakistan especially in the new economic zones that have been identified for Chinese investment under the second phase of CPEC.

Jawad also emphasised the need for the creation of the Pak-China Joint Dispute Resolution Committee for smooth and easy resolution of problems that may arise during the bilateral trade. He also appreciated the strong support extended by the Consul General of China in Karachi to the business community in the Sindh and Baluchistan provinces of Pakistan.

The meeting was attended by a large number of prominent businessmen and representatives of different trade bodies, including FPCCI Vice President Hanif Lakhany, FPCCI Vice President Chaudhry Saleem Bhullar, FPCCI former president Zakaria Usman, former vice presidents Khurram Saeed, Sh Sultan Rehman and Qurban Ali, and many others.