President Alvi urges to depoliticize Beijing Winter Olympics 2022

ISLAMABAD: The Beijing Winter Olympic Games will be “very successful” and Pakistan will participate in the splendid sports event with passion and joy, President Arif Alvi has said.

The president made the remarks during a recent interview with Chinese media, during which he greatly appreciated the efforts China has made in preparation for the 2022 Winter Olympics scheduled to begin on Feb. 4, saying that organizing the event amid the still-raging COVID-19 pandemic “demonstrates China’s efficient and successful way of governance that they can do it.”

“I must congratulate the Chinese government and the Chinese people for the organization effort for the Winter Games,” he added.Alvi noted that it can be learnt from history that sports and Olympics have the power to increase cooperation between people and unite nations, and the young people.

Terming politicizing sports unreasonable and upsetting, Alvi said that the attempt to politicize the Beijing Winter Olympics is doomed to fail.“The world will see a healthy picture of the Olympics,” said the president.

Talking about the Pakistan-China relations, he said that the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries has been strengthened, and that the bilateral relations have become a model of friendship and mutual understanding between nations in the world.

Alvi said that in the past year, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), promoted the economic development of Pakistan, generating a lot of job opportunities for the locals and bolstered Pakistan’s poverty alleviation cause through cooperation in fields of health and education.

He noted that as an important part of CPEC, the Gwadar Port has witnessed great development, and both the countries will work jointly to expedite the construction of the Gwadar free zones to tap the potential of the port as a regional trade and logistics hub.

“I think that the Gwadar Port will increase the chances of peace throughout the region,” Alvi said.In the new phase of high-quality development of the CPEC, the two countries should strengthen cooperation in information technology, cybersecurity, agriculture and health, said the president, adding that the Pakistani side is looking forward to training IT talents and promoting the development of the semiconductor industry with China’s help.

The Pakistani president also congratulated Communist Party of China (CPC) on its 100th anniversary. He said the CPC has led the Chinese people to make remarkable achievements including national independence, and the people’s liberation and poverty alleviation during the past century has been a source of inspiration for people across the world, he said.

The president also greeted on the upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year and wished the 20th National Congress of the CPC scheduled to be held this year, success.