By Shannon Tiezzi
Friendly ties were on display during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s recent trip to Pakistan.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi wrapped up a two-day visit to Pakistan on Friday. Wang met with a number of top Pakistani leaders, including President Mamnoon Hussain, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Sharif’s national security and foreign affairs advisor, Sartaj Aziz, and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif.
Throughout the meetings, both sides affirmed China and Pakistan’s friendship and agreement on various issues. “China-Pakistan friendship is always rock firm regardless of changes in the international and regional situation,” Wang proclaimed. Prime Minister Sharif, for his part, said that friendship with China was the cornerstone of Pakistan’s foreign policy. Sharif also hailed the “the all-weather strategic partnership between the two countries.”
As Ankit noted yesterday for The Pulse, the biggest announcement to come out of Wang’s visit was the confirmation that Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Pakistan in the coming months. There are no details yet on the timing of the visit, but Pakistani officials had previously said they expected Xi to be the chief guest at Pakistan’s military parade, which will take place on March 23, Pakistan’s national day. The visit will be Xi’s first trip to China’s “iron brother” since assuming office — last year, Xi had to cancel a planned visit to Pakistan due to large-scale protests in Islamabad. Interestingly, this week’s trip was also Wang’s first official visit to Pakistan, though he had previously visited both India (June 2014) and Afghanistan (February 2014).
Read the full story at The Diplomat