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Interview: Sino-Pak community of shared destiny to serve both countries, region

(Xinhua)    13:49, May 28, 2015
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ISLAMABAD, May 28 -- The China-Pakistan community of shared destiny will benefit not only the peoples of both countries but also those of the whole region, a senior research fellow of Pakistan told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Pakistan and China have kept an all-weather friendship for more than 60 years when the two countries have stood the tests in some worst times due to the unique relationship featured by a shared destiny, said Saleem Khilji, director of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute based in Islamabad.

"This is a unique relationship which is friction free," Khilji said.

The idea of the community of common destiny was proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping who pointed out that all nations inhabiting the planet should raise awareness about the humanity sharing a community of common destiny, pull together in times of trouble, and strive for common development and lasting peace of the entire world.

"The community of common destiny is a promise to ensure a peaceful and stable neighboring environment that is very vital of relations between Pakistan and China and China and other nations," he said.

He also expressed the belief that under the idea of the community of shared destiny, both China and Pakistan will further consolidate their relations and boost their cooperation in "all fields of life."

Describing the Pakistan-China friendship as "a model friendship between the two countries that are different in social systems," Khilji said this community of common destiny applies to these neighbors that have common interests in the economy, energy, security, defense and diplomacy.

Because of the common interests, they trust each other and feel that their future is intertwined, he added.

According to the senior research fellow, Pakistan is facing a number of problems such as economic crises, weak infrastructure, unemployment, energy shortage and terrorism.

At the difficult time, China comes to help "because China wants to share its destiny with Pakistan in any condition" which the Pakistani people acknowledge, he said, adding that this community of shared destiny will not only help both sides but also benefit the whole region.

Khilji also spoke highly of the Pakistan-China Economic Corridor and the "Belt and Road" initiatives.

"The economic corridor is very important for Pakistan because our country is located at the strategic location, because it is a gateway to landlocked Afghanistan and central Asian states."

"If we talk about China, the economic corridor will give access to China's western provinces, especially to Xinjiang," he said.

The idea to build the economic corridor, a network of roads, railways and energy projects linking southwest Pakistan's deepwater Gwadar Port with northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was proposed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang when he visited Pakistan in May 2013.

The Pakistani government has showed a very serious attitude toward the project and has been keeping it on priority, Khilji said, added that it will give Pakistan an opportunity for economic revival.

"If I say the Pakistan government has taken the Silk Road ( Economic Belt) as a fate-changer road, it would be 100 percent true."

Khilji said the proposed Silk Road (Economic Belt), which has strategic connotations when implemented, will provide a huge boost in transforming Pakistan's economic landscape by linking south, central and western Asia.

"The Silk Road (Economic Belt) will offer access to the 3 billion people of the region to the outside world in a quick way," he said.

As part of the "Road and Belt" initiative, the economic corridor will open up enormous economic opportunities for both countries, Khilji stressed.

(For the latest China news, Please follow People's Daily on Twitter and Facebook)(Editor:Huang Jin,Gao Yinan)

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