Daily Times

BEIJING: China on Monday rejected the United States’ allegations that Pakistan’s economic crisis was a result of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) loans.

“US allegations of Chinese loans causing economic crisis in Pakistan are false. All projects and financial matters falling under CPEC are pursued with mutual agreement of both Pakistan and China,” Chinese foreign ministry’s spokesperson Lu Kang said in a press briefing in Beijing.

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He added that the debt structure released by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in fact, proved that CPEC was not the reason to the country’s economic woes. “The debt is not too much to cause economic instability and details regarding the matter will be shared with the media soon,” Lu Kang continued.

The Chinese dignitary also spoke about Pakistan reaching out to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for possible solutions. “As a member of the IMF, China supports every step the organisation might take to find solutions to Pakistan’s economic problems. Relevant measures shall not affect the normal bilateral relations between China and Pakistan.”

Earlier, US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert had linked the CPEC with Pakistan’s economic turmoil. Finance Minister Asad Umar, however, rubbished the statements asserting that Pakistan would not use bailout package to repay the Chinese loans.