Pakistan PM Visits China with Trade High on Agenda

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　　Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is set to kick start his official visit to China later on today.

 

　　As CRI's Su Yi reports, trade and energy cooperation trade and the environment are expected to dominate the week-long visit.

 

　　Related: QA with Pakistan's Former Foreign Secretary

 

　　The proposed economic corridor linking the strategic Gwadar Port with the western Chinese region of Xinjiang is expected to top Sharif's agenda in Beijing.

 

　　The corridor was proposed by Chinese Premier¹ Li Keqiang during his most recent trip to Pakistan last month.

 

　　Wang Xu is assistant to the director at the centre for South Asian studies at Peking University.

 

　　He says the project, once completed, is going to benefit people on both sides.

 

　　"First, the project can strengthen Sino-Pakistan trade ties and help Pakistan to overcome some economic problems it's facing right now, including energy and power shortages. Second, it will help China integrate economically with South Asian and Middle East countries. Because the corridor takes off from Kashgar in Xinjiang and it ends in Southern Pakistan, the Port of Gwadar and Karachi. So this is going to drive the development of western China."

 

　　The corridor consists of a series of special economic zones, on top of a rail link and a pipeline² providing China access to the Indian Ocean.

 

　　During his 6-day trip here in China, Sharif is also going to discuss clean energy cooperation with Chinese officials.

 

　　Wang Dehua is from the South Asia and Central Asian Studies centre at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies.

 

　　"China and Pakistan have already reached agreements on hydro power stations, thanks to China's experience on our Three Gorges³ Dam project. The two countries can also deepen cooperation on solar, wind, and bio power and other renewable energy fields. Besides, China is developing technologies that process coal to crude oil, and Pakistan has fair amount of coal reserves, so we've got huge potential in this area as well."

 

　　This is Nawaz Sharif's first foreign trip since assuming office last month.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Su Yi.

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