ISLAMABAD, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a symbol of Pakistan's all-weather strategic cooperative partnership with China, is a cornerstone of the South Asian country's peaceful growth and economic prosperity, according to Pakistani officials.
Launched in 2013, CPEC is a corridor linking the Gwadar port in southwestern Pakistan with Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which highlights energy, transport and industrial cooperation.
Romina Khurshid Alam, convener of the National Parliamentary Task Force on Sustainable Development Goals, told Xinhua CPEC is a reflection of the long-standing Pakistan-China ironclad friendship, which has grown deeper and deeper.
"Pakistan-China relations have transformed into a strong economic partnership owing to CPEC. With CPEC moving in the right direction, a prosperous and peaceful future for Pakistan is promised," the lawmaker said.
Alam said CPEC has achieved extraordinary milestones over the past several years. A number of development projects under the framework of CPEC have been bringing about socio-economic benefits for the people of Pakistan.
Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Aisha Ghaus Pasha said CPEC proved to be a game changer for Pakistan, founding a strong base for peace, development and win-win cooperation between China and Pakistan.
"It (CPEC) helped Pakistan to do away with the severe energy crisis by implementing various power projects across the country, building state-of-the-art road infrastructure, and operationalizing deep-sea Gwadar Port, creating business opportunities in Gwadar and along CPEC highways," Pasha told Xinhua.
As CPEC has moved toward the second phase of high-quality development, the two neighbors have been cooperating in the fields of health, industry, agriculture, information technology and social welfare, she said.
With enhanced cooperation with China in a variety of fields, Pakistan has been learning from the Chinese model of inclusive growth and implementing it in Pakistan to enhance socio-economic development, she added.
Mushahid Hussain Syed, chairman of Pakistani Senate's Defense Committee, told Xinhua that CPEC is a framework of regional connectivity, benefiting not only Pakistan and China, but would be favorable for central Asian countries as Pakistan offers the shortest route to international seas through its southern port of Karachi and Gwadar port.
Being a vital national project of Pakistan, CPEC would not only facilitate economic connectivity of Pakistan beyond South Asia, but drive the movement of people across the regions, promoting people-to-people exchanges, cultural activities, trade, businesses and investments, as well as helping countries to build more integrated region of shared destiny, harmony and development, the senator said.
He said the countries are currently focusing on geo-economics for shared prosperity rather than security-centric policies, adding that the emerging connectivity has been providing enormous opportunities for regional development. ■