Xi meets Sharif, promises debt relief, expresses concern about Belt and Road security
Pakistan owes China US billion in loans. Beijing says it wants to continue investing in the South Asian country, but the flow of money has shrunk in recent years. Chinese workers are often attacked by Balochi separatists and Pakistani Taliban.
Beijing (AsiaNews) – China will help Pakistan on the debt issue and will continue to invest in its infrastructure, despite growing security concerns for Chinese companies, Chinese President Xi Jinping said today at the end of his meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Beijing.
Pakistan is facing a serious debt crisis, exacerbated by summer floods that have caused more than US$ 30 billion in damages.
China will provide Pakistan with debt relief; at present, the debt amounts to US$ 23 billion out of US$ 27 billion worth of non-Paris Club debt, Reuters reported.
Pakistan is a key link in China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a set of infrastructure megaprojects launched by Xi in 2013 to boost trade between China and the rest of the world.
Xi told Sharif that the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) must proceed more effectively.
With Chinese funds, Islamabad aims above all to develop the port of Gwadar on the Arabian Sea and a railway network connected to Karachi, the country's commercial hub.
China pledged some US$ 65 billion in investments, but in recent years the flow of money has become a trickle.
According to the China Global Investment Tracker, Chinese investments in Pakistan reached US$ 4.8 billion in 2018, dropping to US$ 1.4 billion last year, and US$ 590 million in the first six months of this year.
China's lower financial involvement is due to the economic downturn at home and globally, and threats to the security of Chinese companies operating in Pakistan.
Chinese staff and vehicles have been targeted by separatist groups and terrorists, such as the Balochistan Liberation Army in the Gwadar area, and the Pakistani Taliban in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa province, on the border with Afghanistan..
On the security issue, Xi was straightforward with Sharif. China, he said, is “highly concerned about the safety of Chinese in Pakistan, and hopes Pakistan can provide a reliable and safe environment for Chinese institutions and personnel carrying out cooperation in Pakistan.”
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