ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan said that the West had criticized China’s attitude towards Xinjiang’s Uyghur Muslims but remained silent on the Indian atrocities in Kashmir.
In an exclusive interaction with Chinses journalists, the Prime Minister said in response to a question, China has been criticized around the world for its policies toward Uyghurs. Pakistan has sent its ambassador Moinul Haq there and he found the different ground realities.
He said that the West talks about Uyghur but does not talk about Kashmir. The worst human rights atrocities are taking place in India’s illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Imran Khan stated.
While lamenting the western quiet on the issue the premier said that nine million people live in an open jail in the occupied valley.
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When asked about the situation in Afghanistan, the Prime Minister encouraged the international community to consider the welfare of the forty million Afghans who are facing a humanitarian crisis. He advised against departing Afghanistan, claiming that doing so would be terrible.
Prime Minister Imran Khan while hailing the Chinese development model has stated that Pakistan wants to follow China’s development model in order to achieve inclusive economic growth and elevate its people out of poverty.
He noted that China had lifted 700 million people out of poverty during the last three decades or so. He added that the international community respects this feat since it is unprecedented in human history. China, he continued, is an example for other countries seeking inclusive progress.
When asked about the multibillion-dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the Prime Minister said the first phase of the project was focused on connectivity and electricity generation.
He stated that the corridor project has now progressed to the next phase of industry relocation to Pakistan. We’re working on creating special economic zones. He also expressed Pakistan’s desire for Chinese collaboration in technology and farm productivity.
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In reference to Pakistan’s growing urbanisation, he stated that we want to learn from China’s experience in terms of how they constructed megacities and dealt with urban development.
Pakistan and China have had a seventy-year mutually beneficial partnership, said Imran Khan. He described the Pak-China friendship as “deep” and “becoming stronger with the passage of time.” In difficult times, he noted, both countries have always stood by one other. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has brought the two countries closer together.
The Prime Minister also congratulated the Chinese people on their lunar new year on behalf of the Pakistani people. He expressed excitement about his forthcoming trip to China to watch the Winter Olympics.
In response to China’s sporting achievements, he stated that Pakistan is eager to expand its cooperation with Beijing in this area as well.
