Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Yao Jing on Thursday sought to address the doubts that exist both locally and internationally over the massive Chinese investment through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the country, saying before deciding any major investment abroad, his country sees "who is good to us and who is not".
Speaking at the Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad (ISSI), "Pakistan-China Relations and Next Phase of CPEC", the Chinese envoy termed the anti-CPEC voices as propaganda of the Western powers.
"China is not coming here [Pakistan] as [a] colonial power...Our aim is development of Pakistan...they cannot stop our joint cooperation. We are committed to common prosperity and regional peace," he asserted, while responding to a query about the growing Pakistan-China cooperation and the concerns by some Western powers, particularly by the United States.
Without mentioning any quarter, the Chinese envoy also rejected the concerns raised over the transparency of the CPEC projects. "These are not the problems, but just perceptions. If you have any question...if you are writing any article, please check with us before publishing," he further stated.
Responding to another query with regard to alleged persecution of Muslims in China, Yao also described it as part of the ongoing propaganda campaign against his country, adding that a very small in number are associated with East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) etc.
"Western media is propagating that China is persecuting the Muslims. In fact, these terrorists, who can be found in any other country, do not represent any religion," he added. "We don't want to be 'Number One'. We don't want to replace you. But we do want to play our part in global peace and development. We want peaceful coexistence on the basis of mutual respect and a win-win situation in state-to-state relations," Yao further stated.
The Chinese envoy once again rejected the US concerns over Pakistan's borrowing under the CPEC, saying that the total loan was of less than $6 billion with a repayment period of 20-25 years and an interest rate of approximately two percent. He further said 63 percent of the companies engaged in the CPEC projects are Pakistani companies.
However, he pointed out that China needs very skilled labour and completion of the work within the set completion period, 'though Pakistan labour is, yet they are unskilled'. In response to another query with regard to concerns over the massive Chinese investment in Pakistan, he said that the decision of the Chinese leadership to massively invest in Pakistan was the right decision.
"Pakistan is a true choice by our leadership and our people. Whenever we want to investment anywhere abroad, we first evaluate who is good to us and who is not...Pakistan is the most favourite, true and trusted neighbour and foreign ally," he asserted.
He also stated that the 10th Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting scheduled to be held in April in Islamabad, is going to be held via video conference, as the Chinese delegation, which was due to arrive in Islamabad canceled its visit due to coronavirus. He insisted that CPEC is the major part of Pakistan-China strategic partnership.
He said that the next phase of CPEC is focusing on the social development of Pakistan with key priorities of 17 fast track projects aimed at improving the infrastructure of railways, industrial cooperation, agriculture, health and education, as well as some more energy projects. He said that there is also a proposal of Special Economic Zones (SEZs), but only one - the Rashakai - has so far been finalized.
The Chinese envoy, however, pointed out that the coronavirus outbreak in his country is creating a "little" problem, as Chinese workers and businessmen associated with the CPEC projects are currently not coming to Pakistan. "But this is temporary and we hope we will come out of the situation successfully," he hoped and also thanked Pakistan and its people for expressing solidarity with China at this testing time.
Responding to a question about lack of facilities such as drinking water, electricity supply and healthcare for local people in Gwadar, the Chinese ambassador in a candid response pointed out the slow pace of work of bureaucracy in Balochistan. He said that he had to himself visit Quetta and hold meetings with three different chief ministers over a period of two and a half years to get a no-objection certificate for a Chinese government power project in Gwadar. The Chinese envoy mentioned that he finally got the NOC in November last year.
Ambassador Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry who was moderating the question-and-answer session, pointed out that the issues of lack of facilities for local people in Gwadar are questions that need to be directed to the local, provincial and the federal governments, and not to the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan.
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