Forum on cooperation between Chinese and Pakistan provinces and cities a success

Ai Lin

O n Dec 9， the 2021 Forum on Cooperation between China and Pakistan Friendship Provinces and Cities was successfully held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing， online and offline simultaneously. The forum was co-hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Pakistan embassy in China.

Zhang Chunxian， vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of China， and Qasim Khan Suri， deputy speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan， delivered keynote speeches at the opening ceremony. Lin Songtian， president of the CPAFFC； Moin ul Haque， Pakistan’s ambassador to China； and Mohsin Mushtaq Chandna， secretary of the Ministry of InterProvincial Coordination of Pakistan， also addressed the forum.

Sha Zukang， president of the China-Pakistan Friendship Association； Hua Chunying， assistant minister of Foreign Affairs of China； and 240 professionals from local governments， enterprises and other sectors in both countries attended the forum. Lin Yi， vice-president of the CPAFFC， presided over the forum.

Zhang Chunxian noted that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The two sides held a series of high-level celebrations， and leaders of the two countries exchanged congratulatory messages.

“It fully demonstrates the ironclad friendship and high-level cooperation between China and Pakistan，” Zhang said， adding that friendship cities are a point of strength and medium through which countries can develop foreign relations and promote exchanges and cooperation.

“We should strengthen the unique bond of friendship cities between both countries， draw on each other’s strengths and carry out practical exchanges and cooperation，” Zhang said. “It is of great significance to consolidating the foundation of public support for China-Pakistan friendship and building an even closer ChinaPakistan community with a shared future.”

In his speech， Zhang spoke of the spirit of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee. He offered four suggestions on deepening friendly exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation between local governments of the two countries.

First， he said， we should take the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations as an opportunity to firmly advance the building of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

“We will turn mutual political trust into tangible results of common development to bring more benefits to the two peoples，” he said.

Second， we should “synergize our development strategies， plans and policies， encourage local governments of both countries， especially our friendship cities， to achieve mutual benefit and common development，” he said.

“We will help the people of Pakistan to lift themselves out of poverty and realize high-standard and sustainable development.”

Third， he said， we should“strengthen mutual learning and provide institutional and legal guarantees for mutually beneficial cooperation”， adding that “we will actively create a favorable environment for cooperation” and build solid public support and a social foundation.

Fourth， he concluded， “We should enhance security coordination， share experience and cooperate on smart cities， safe cities and joint prevention and control to ensure the safety of the lives and interests of the two peoples and create a reliable security environment for bilateral cooperation.”

Qasim Khan Suri， on behalf of the National Assembly of Pakistan， saluted the centennial of the Communist Party of China and the 50th anniversary of China’s restoration of its lawful seat in the United Nations. He said the CPC’s people-centered approach has become a benchmark for political parties in developing countries to follow and an example to learn from. China’s success in poverty reduction and the fight against COVID-19 is a concentrated reflection of the concept of putting people first， he said.

Suri noted that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project has entered its second phase. Cooperation between friendship provinces and cities is an important way to build the corridor， he said， adding that it has opened up new channels for practical exchanges and cooperation in business， investment， education， science， agriculture， technology， vocational education and culture.

He suggested that the two sides establish direct communication channels and set up a joint working group to explore high-quality cooperation by providing policy support， financial incentives， preferential treatment and scholarships.

The CPAFFC’s Lin said that in answering questions of the century and questions faced by the whole world， President Xi Jinping had put forward a great vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind and outlined two paths.

First， we should uphold the common values of mankind， develop democracy throughout the whole process and jointly build a new type of international relations.

Second， we should jointly build on the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Development Initiative. These， Lin said， have drawn up a new blueprint for win-win cooperation and common development for people of all countries and provided important concepts and basic approaches.

Lin pledged that the CPAFFC will give full play to its strength in the people-to-people field. “We will support friendship provinces and cities of both countries to build the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor as a driving force，” he said. “We will facilitate investment attraction between local governments of the two countries， especially between friendship provinces and cities. We will promote friendly exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation between businesses， think tanks and the youth of both sides. We will support win-win cooperation and common development between China and Pakistan， expand and consolidate public support and the social foundation for bilateral friendship.”

Chen Weijun， executive vicechairman of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region； He Jinping， vicegovernor of Henan province； Zhao Haishan， vice-governor of Hubei province； Xing Chunning， deputy director of the Standing Committee of the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress； Abdul Quddus Bizenjo， chief minister of Balochistan； Syed Murad Ali Shah， chief minister of Sindh； Sardar Usman Buzdar， chief minister of Punjab； and Mohsin Mushtaq， secretary of Pakistan’s Ministry of Inter Provincial Coordination， also attended the forum and made remarks.

Focusing on the theme of“Win-win Cooperation for Common Development”， participants reached broad consensus on building a closer China-Pakistan relationship based on the vision of a community with a shared future. They agreed to release a joint declaration on win-win cooperation for common development.

Participants congratulated the CPC on its centennial and spoke highly of the tremendous achievement in bilateral relations since the establishment of diplomatic ties 70 years ago. It has set a benchmark for international solidarity and cooperation in addressing the challenges posed by the pandemic， safeguarding world equity and justice and jointly building a high-quality China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and expanding the Belt and Road Initiative.

The two sides looked forward to enhancing strategic synergy and achieving complementarity and common development. The participants expressed hope of working together to transform the traditional friendship rooted in the hearts of the people into practical results that will benefit both sides.

They expected the advantages of the all-weather strategic partnership will be turned into advantages of mutual benefit and common development. Exchanges and cooperation will also be strengthened between friendship cities in infrastructure， industry， science and technology， education and vocational training.

At the forum， friendly cooperation agreements were signed by the cities of Shenyang and Karachi and by the Zhengzhou Botanical Garden and Ayub National Park. Letters of intent were signed by Qinghai province and Cape province and by the cities of Zhengzhou and Quetar， Pingdingshan and Multan， Xining and Peshawar， Dongying and Gujranwala， Sanjiangyuan National Park and La Suhanla National Park and by Qinghai Lake and Kenhar Lake.

The 2021 Forum on Cooperation between China and Pakistan Friendship Provinces and Cities is an institutional activity initiated by the CPAFFC and the Embassy of Pakistan in China in 2019. It is one of a series of activities to celebrate the 70th anniversary of China-Pakistan diplomatic relations.