New Delhi: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has landed in Henan for a one-day visit to China after experiencing humiliation on Kashmir from Saudi Arabia. Qureshi has described it as a ‘very significant’ journey aimed at strengthening the strategic partnership between the ‘Iron Brothers’.
During this visit, Qureshi will meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Henan is the same place where China has maintained a huge base of submarines.
Qureshi said: “The purpose of this visit is to show Pakistan’s political and military leadership goals.” According to a report in the Hindustan Times, the Pakistani Foreign Minister has reached China on a three-point plan, including military cooperation.
Earlier, the People’s Liberation Army had signed an agreement with the Pakistan Army in August last year for defence cooperation and capacity building.
Bid to bring Pakistani and Chinese armies together
The Pakistan Army wants to strengthen its relationship with the PLA and form a Joint Military Commission. The motive behind this plan is that strategic decisions can be taken between the two armies. This will bring the PLA and the Pakistan Army together. Apart from this, the Imran Khan government will discuss to intensify the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
People associated with the case say that Qureshi wants China to help improve infrastructure in Sindh, Pak-Occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan region. Both PoK and Gilgit are occupied by Pakistan but India claims it. China is building a road and railway link from Pakistan to China by investing around $ 60 billion. Through this, Xinjiang province of China will be connected to Pakistan’s Gwadar Port.
It is believed that India may figure prominently in this discussion between China and Pakistan. The Foreign Ministers of the two countries are meeting at a time when both of them have reached their lower levels with regard to LoC and Kashmir. It is being said that China has assured Pakistan that the entire issue of Kashmir will be coordinated with Islamabad. The Imran Khan government wants China to go a step further and take it to the United Nations General Assembly session next month. So far, only Turkey and Malaysia have done so.
To further strengthen its hold in Nepal, Pakistan wants a transport corridor to transport its goods via China to Nepal. Nepal has already signed an agreement with China last year to build 20 infrastructure. Under this, all-weather roads and tunnels are to be built in the Himalayan region. This visit takes place at a time when Pakistan’s relations with Saudi Arabia have deteriorated after Qureshi’s threat on Kashmir. Pakistan has to borrow from China to pay off Saudi Arabia’s debt.