Second phase of CPEC to focus on agriculture, industrialisation: PM Imran

Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday that the second phase of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will focus on industrialisation and agriculture, adding that food security is a major issue for which the country needs assistance.

In an exclusive interview with CGTN China, Khan discussed a wide array of issues ranging from Pakistan-China's relationship to CPEC and the geopolitical situation.

Terming the bilateral relation ‘'unique'', Khan said that ties have passed through the test of time and have gotten stronger.

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“CPEC started off with connectivity and power generation," said the premier. "Now we want it to move it to the next stage, which is industrialisation, information technology and above all, agriculture. This sector is the mainstay of our country as having a growing population, we need food security so it's very important that we cooperate with China in improving productivity."

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Talking about the impact of Pakistan and China's relationship, Khan said it has brought "stability in the whole region".

"However, concerns remain due to policies adopted by the present Indian government.

“Unfortunately right now, Pakistan’s problem, and to some extent China’s, is with our neighbour India. I am one of those people who firmly believe that we should resolve all our differences through political dialogue, but as I said it is unfortunate that in India we have a government, which is an extreme nationalist government. Unfortunately, we find it very difficult to move forward with them specifically because of the Kashmir issue.”

Khan stated that Kashmir is our only issue with India, adding that rather than trying to resolve it, India has made things worse.

“I hope that sooner or later we would resolve it through political dialogue,” he said.

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On the Afghanistan situation, the prime minister said that no nation has suffered like the people of Afghanistan.

“The problem right now is there is a prospect of a huge humanitarian crisis because Afghanistan is dependent upon foreign aid,” said Khan.

He said that 75% of the budget of the Afghanistan government came from foreign aid, but after the Taliban took over, the aid left and the whole government is in a serious state of crisis.

“China, Pakistan and even the European countries agree that somehow likes and dislikes of the Taliban government should be set aside and the only concern should be the nearly 40 million people, half of which that are in a very precarious position in terms of food insecurity,” said Khan.

Talking about the importance of CPEC, Khan was of the view that the project is extremely significant for the economy and development of Pakistan.

CPEC under renewed China focus

“The Chinese investment for connectivity and power generation came at a very crucial time in Pakistan,” said Khan.

“Now CPEC is going in its second stage, and the second stage is i) investment in industrial zones, ii) Information Technology, and iii) agriculture.

He said that Pakistan is already signing MoUs with Chinese companies which will be mutually beneficial. “The Chinese companies will gain from investments and Pakistan will gain from the technology transfer.

“My government's priority is to lift our people out of poverty. Unfortunately, almost 25% of our population is below the poverty line and the main consideration is to lift them and the role model we have in mind is China's."

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Commenting on Pakistan-US ties in wake of rising tensions between US and China, the prime minister stated, “The world does not need another Cold War. The world should not go through the situation where it is divided into two camps, as it does not benefit anyone."