President Dr Arif Alvi on Tuesday called for more robust cooperation with the People’s Republic of China in the areas of trade, economy, culture and defence. He said that China was a reliable and tested friend, and Pakistan wanted to further strengthen the strategic relations for the mutual benefit of the two countries. The president made these remarks during his meetings with the ambassadors-designate of the People’s Republic of China and Venezuela (Non-resident), as well as the Republic of Colombia (Non-resident), who presented their diplomatic credentials and separately called on him at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, the President Secretariat Press Wing said in a press release. Welcoming Ambassador-designate of China to Pakistan Jiang Zaidong, the president said that Pakistan highly valued its ties with China as it had always stood by it at difficult times. He said that Pakistan would continue to support China on all core issues. Highlighting the importance of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the president said that CPEC would greatly contribute to the socio-economic development of Pakistan. He said that the project had helped in modernizing “our infrastructure, building our capacity and ensuring a sustainable energy supply”. Pakistan was fully committed to timely completion of all projects under CPEC, he reiterated. The president expressed his gratitude for China’s unflinching support to Pakistan’s socio-economic development as well as its principled stance on the Jammu & Kashmir dispute. In his meeting with Ambassador-designate of Venezuela Jose Rafael Silva Aponte, the president said that Pakistan placed special emphasis on improving trade and economic relations with Venezuela. He highlighted that the Venezuelan investors could benefit from investment-friendly policies of Pakistan. While talking to Ambassador-designate of the Republic of Colombia, Julio Anibal Riano Velandia, President Alvi underlined the need for further enhancing economic, culture and trade relations with Columbia. The president congratulated the envoys on their appointments and expressed the hope that they would play their role to further enhance bilateral cooperation between their respective countries and Pakistan.