Pakistan-China Relations: A Strategic Partnership Over Economic Challenges

Pakistan-China relations have remained active as Islamabad moves through the different erosions of economic crises and regional complexities. The latest statements made by the newly elected Shehbaz Sharif as a Prime Minister of Pakistan, as well as the actions conducted by his government in recent days, proves that Islamabad is willing to sustain a strong strategic partnership with Beijing while working on Washington’s relations. The cooperation started as far back as 1951, and has been expanding particularly after the signing of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in 2013, and covers a wide range of spheres, including economic, cultural and media ones.

Financial Trade Relations and Debt Management

This is because Pakistan’s economic status has called for increased exploration of diplomatic prowess to support its financial status. The nation has sought a large debt-sustainable restructuring package from China of over US$ 12 billion annual debt looking for rollover for 3 to 5 years. Prime Minister Sharif’s administration has also asked Beijing to factor in converting imported coal-based projects to domestic coal and to renegotiate more than US$ 15 billion ‘s outstanding energy sector debt.

In an interview Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said that repayments of energy sectors were an important issue during Sharif’s Beijing trip that resulted into letters to Chinese government. These are among the measures Pakistan has been implementing to secure $ 7 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund with similar demands to Saudi Arabia and UAE.

Security Issues affecting the development of CPEC

Second phase of CPEC has begun, declared during Prime Minister Sharif’s visit to China in June this year. However, there has been a significant set back in this project due to some security issues. The suicide attack in March that killed five Chinese engineers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province showed that security problems remained, prompting Chinese worries about the security of their personnel.

Nevertheless, the existing media and cultural cooperation between two countries is in the process of steady enhancement. PTV has signed contracts with CCTV to invest in content exchange and partnership in joint programs that underscore the symbiotic characteristic of partnership.