The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a grand project of friendship and economic development between the two countries, the likes of which cannot be found anywhere else in the world. In fact, this project can take the friendship to next level as it is a game-changer project, which is basically revolving around the regional connectivity and infrastructure development.

This year, ten years of this project have been completed, to celebrate which special events are being organized in both the countries. Chinese leadership and scholars will be invited to the events in Pakistan while Pakistani delegations will go to China.

In these ten years, many development projects have been completed in various sectors of Pakistan’s economy with Chinese investment and many are under completion. In the next phase, there is a plan to lay a railway line from Gwadar to Kashgar, apart from this, work is also underway on the target of completing Karachi Circular Railway, energy, agriculture, science and technology, IT and many other infrastructure projects. Gwadar, which was once a small fishing village, has now become a major port of international importance, opening sea routes between Pakistan and the outside world beyond Karachi.

After the completion of the first phase of the Free Trade Zone in Gwadar, the second phase is under construction. This will help control  the current economic crisis in Pakistan to some extent. Financial experts say that new employment opportunities will be created due to which the youth can be employed and a new era of development and prosperity will usher in, which is need of the hour.

However, our arch-rival India wants to sabotage this project and for this it funds the separatists and anti-state elements in the country, particularly the Baluchistan province. In order to stop this project, India with the help of the anti-state elements made a strong push. Apart from external factors, some internal elements also put obstacles but all their efforts failed and now the situation is that almost all the countries of the region and some countries of the outside world are eager to be a part of it.

This ambitious investment project was delayed due to Pakistan’s political instability, which has now been removed and it can be expected that this CPEC project will further strengthen the friendship between the two countries. It may be mentioned here that during the PTI government, the CPEC project was subject to undue delay and various snags were there, due to which the Chinese Govt was also irked. The inaction by the former PTI rule on CPEC project has delayed the completion of projects like  $10bn railway project, the Karachi Circular Railway, and the schemes pertaining to energy production worth $18.5bn. It was mainly due to the deferrals in payments to Chinese power producers by the former PTI government that is factor behind delay. What is going on behind the scene is not exactly know at this point but one thing is for sure that the PTI government during its  previous tenure gave cold-shouldered approach to this game-changer project. 

It ought to be mentioned with concern that not a single project was completed and funding to the ongoing ones was also stopped during the PTI government’s tenure.

As a matter of fact, the PTI government deliberately ignored this mega project.

Let me give you the first example of Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s extremist thinking with reference to the historical sit-in of 2013, during which PTV and Parliament House were attacked and dirty clothes were hung on the Supreme Court. And financial experts say that the sit-in also proved detrimental to Pak-China CPEC project as the sit-in was staged at a time when Chinese President was to visit Pakistan. The purpose of this sit-in was to come to power, but the real conspiracy was to cancel the visit of the President of China to Pakistan. In the background of this visit, the CPEC project became victim of delay and IK got a chance to become Prime Minster later on.

Recently, in the backdrop of the unity of the Arab world with the efforts of China, Army Chief General Asim Munir went an official visit to China. The Chinese leadership was assured of completing the CPEC and providing security to it. On these assurances, China announced a plan to lay a railway line from Kashgar to Gwadar at a cost of fifty-eight billion dollars.  The project will connect the 1860-mile long railway system from Gwadar to the Xinjiang city of Guanzhou.  The first cargo ship of crude oil from Russia is reaching Pakistan in a few days. Pakistan-Iran relations are giving hope for a bright future. Pak-Iran gas pipeline project is being implemented.  A serious proposal of mutual trade through Islamabad, Tehran, Istanbul train is under consideration. Road to Makkah project is becoming a reality.  In such a situation, what the PTI is doing is a deliberate conspiracy against CPEC and Pakistan’s good relations with Muslim neighbours like Iran and trade and economic relations.

This is a question for Imran Khan and his supporters AS why do protests, sit-ins, fire and blood play start whenever CPEC is mobilized?

As a matter of fact, Chinese companies have already invested around $25 billion under the umbrella of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and  as reported in the media , more projects and plans to the tune of $20 billion are under implementation and will materialize soon.

We are living in an era where stronger trade and economic cooperation has become the focus of all countries and in this backdrop the CPEC’s ongoing projects gain added significance.

Published in The Daily National Courier, June, 02 2023

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