Vice Premier of China He Lifeng arrives in Islamabad on a three-day visit to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, July 30 (SABAH): At the invitation of the Government of Pakistan, He Lifeng, Vice Premier of China and Member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party arrived in Islamabad on a three-day visit to Pakistan.

Minister for Interior Affairs Rana Sanuallah Khan, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhry, SAPM Syed Tariq Fatemi, Charge’d Affairs, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Pakistan Ms. Pang Chunxue and other officials received him at the airport.

According to a statement issued by Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, during the visit, Vice Premier He Lifeng will attend the 10th-anniversary celebrations of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and call on President Dr. Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. He will also be the chief guest at an event celebrating the Decade of CPEC. 

Vice Premier He Lifeng has played a prominent role in China’s international economic relations and implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, of which CPEC is a flagship project. As the Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (2017-23), he was instrumental in the planning and execution of multiple CPEC projects in Pakistan.

The visit is part of regular high-level exchanges and dialogue between Pakistan and China. It reflects the importance attached by Pakistan and China to further deepen their “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership”; reaffirm support on issues of each other’s core interests; enhance economic and financial cooperation; advance high-quality development of CPEC; and explore new avenues for strengthening trade and investment ties between the two countries.