Daily Times

Pakistan and China have a very close relationship, which has contributed significantly to the stability of Pakistan. China has invested heavily in Pakistan’s infrastructure development, energy projects, and industrial zones. This has created job opportunities for locals and increased economic activity, leading to stability. China has helped Pakistan in combating terrorism and improving border security. This has helped to maintain stability in the country. China has been a strong supporter of Pakistan in international forums, which has helped Pakistan to maintain its sovereignty and stability. China has provided significant military aid and training to Pakistan’s armed forces, which has improved its capability to defend its sovereignty. Overall, the strong relationship between Pakistan and China has played a crucial role in contributing to the stability of Pakistan by enhancing its economic, security, political, cultural, and military aspects. If we look into the history, the relationship between the two countries has been 72 years. The friendship between Pakistan and China is said to be higher than the Himalayas, deeper than the sea and sweeter than honey. Pakistan’s other neighbour India is also emerging as an economic power, even Bangladesh is developing surprisingly but Pakistan continued to perform well in the economic field and at one time Pakistan was the most prosperous country in South Asia and East Asia. Examples of Pakistan were given and Pakistan was considered a superpower in Asia, but today it is the case that the neighbouring countries which we have been helping have gone far ahead of us. But today the situation has changed, China has become a global economic power, India has become the fifth-largest economy in the world, and Bangladesh has become the second-largest economy in South Asia after India. In South Asia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Afghanistan are the only countries that can be said to be behind Pakistan But the Pakistani rupee has also fallen below Sri Lanka and Nepal against the dollar.

Pakistan is suffering from severe economic problems and the value of the rupee is continuously depreciating.

As I mentioned at the beginning of the column, China has been instrumental in making Pakistan’s defence and security impregnable. The secret of China’s development is hidden in its economic development that despite the tensions with the United States and India, it did not end its trade with these countries and China imports more than five hundred billion dollars annually to the United States alone. Similarly, China’s trade volume with India is more than 100 billion dollars, in comparison with Pakistan, with which China has very friendly relations, its annual trade volume is 23 billion dollars.

The foundation of the CPEC Pakistan China Economic Corridor was laid on May 22, 2013. 2023 also marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative and the resulting China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. Under the strategic guidance of the leadership of both countries, CPEC has become a lifeline and game changer for Pakistani socio-economic transformation. The main objective of the China-Pakistan Corridor project is to build an integrated infrastructure for trade activities. Along with this, China’s One Belt Road project is a game changer project which is a great project to eradicate world poverty and strengthen the economy. If the CPEC project in Pakistan is evaluated in relation to the economy of Pakistan, the country’s economy will develop rapidly after the completion of the project and the start of commercial activities. This is a project that has seen negligible progress in the previous regime, but the current military and political leadership has given orders to speed up the project, without a doubt, it is a project that can change the destiny of Pakistan. Because the relationship between Pakistan and China has completed 72 years, at a time when Pakistan is suffering from economic difficulties, China can play an important role in the stability of Pakistan. This year, when Pakistan was dealing with extraordinary financial and economic challenges due to a lack of foreign exchange reserves and difficulty in repaying external debt, China was the first and immediate support for loans, deposits and rollovers. If Pakistan implements the CPEC and related projects with the help of China in the true sense, Pakistan can achieve political and economic stability.

The reason for the delay in the agreement with the IMF is that Pakistan is suffering from severe economic problems and the value of the rupee is continuously depreciating.

Although Pakistan’s Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has once again strongly rejected rumours of the country defaulting, economic experts say that if the instalment from the International Monetary Fund is delayed, the economic situation will worsen in this situation. If there is no agreement with the IMF, Pakistan will have to make a plan together with China for economic stability because it is a friend of Pakistan who can get Pakistan out of difficulties.

He writer is an old Aitchisonian who believes in freedom of expression, a freelance columnist, entrepreneur and social activist.