Our Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD - A senior official of Chinese Embassy on Sunday said that a new schedule of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit would be decided after political situation in Pakistan returns to normalcy, brushing aside the impression that postponement of the visit would affect the Pak-China bilateral ties.
"Both Chinese and Pakistan officials are consulting with each other so that the visit can take place at an early date. A new date of the visit of Chinese President will not be too far," he told an informal media briefing here.
Terming the current political situation in Pakistan as an internal matter of Pakistani people, he said, "We are confident the Pakistani people have the capacity to resolve their political issues amicably."
He said that politics is an internal matter of Pakistan and no foreign country is entitled to interfere in it.
The official dispelled the impression and speculations that the postponement of Chinese President's visit to Pakistan could affect Pak-China historical ties in any manner whatsoever.
He categorically stated that all those projects agreed between the two countries will carry on and will be implemented in letter and spirit.
The official said, "How can postponement of a single visit between the two countries affect their decades' old historical strategic partnership."
He said the number of top-level visits took place between the two countries in the recent years were unprecedented and especially mentioned visits of President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visits to China and the Chinese Premier visit to Pakistan during last 15 months.
The official said that his country is actively engaged in finding way out to carry on all those projects which are to be signed during the President Xi's scheduled visit to Pakistan, adding, "Lets foil those attempts which are aimed at harming our relationship by taking excuse of the postponed visit."
He said that the diplomatic channels and officials of the two countries had done a lot of preparation for the positive and concrete outcome of the visit. However, the expected fruits and outcome will be achieved, in spite of its postponement.
To a question, the official said China's relations with Pakistan cannot be compared in any manner with other countries. It is unique in its nature, in term of warmness at the people-to-people level.
Answering another question, he said that the Pak-China cooperation is broad based and mutually beneficial and it cannot be defined in terms of loan or investment. It is not the question of short-term interest or one country benefit, adding, "We are working for mutually beneficial cooperative partnership."
He said that both China and Pakistan are working to take up some huge economic projects, like construction of Lahore-Karachi motorway and two power plants at Port Qasim and Sahiwal.
The official also said since Pakistan is China's largest investment destination in South Asia, therefore, a stable and prosperous Pakistan is in the interest of China.