CPEC to benefit everyone including United States, says Pakistani govt advisor

• United States is not seeing CPEC as an economic corridor but a military corridor, says Salman Shah.
• CPEC has become a bone of contention between China and the United States.

Advisor to the Chief Minister of Punjab on Economic Affairs Salman Shah has said that Pakistan needs to tell the world that China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is an economic corridor, offering benefits to all including Europe and United States.

“The United States is not seeing CPEC as an economic corridor but a military corridor, as US thinks that the Chinese military would utilize it,” said Salman, adding, "So it is important for us to convey to the world that the corridor is beneficial for all".

“Secondly, we must also not forget that apart from CPEC we also have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China, under which some 313 priority based items that Pakistan exports would be zero rated, whereas the rest of items will become zero rated in the coming 10 years,” Shah said.

CPEC once again become a bone of contention between China and the United States after a senior US diplomat Alice Wells alleged that there was no transparency in CPEC projects,  claiming Pakistan's debt burden was growing due to the Chinese financing.

Meanwhile, Shah was of the view that it is the interest of both Pakistan and China that CPEC is the most efficient and on least cost basis. He said that the CPEC would be beneficial for the entire region, so it is important that complete due diligence is done.

The statement comes after the embassy of China in Pakistan rejected on Wednesday the senior US diplomat Alice Wells' negative rhetoric against CPEC terming it pack of lies.

Statement said that during her recent visit to Pakistan, Acting Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs of the US State Department Alice Wells made negative comments on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor again which held nothing new but the same cliche in her speech in November, 2019 and had been repeatedly rejected by China and Pakistan.

However despite repeated rejection, the US side still ignores the facts and is obsessed with the story it made for the CPEC, according to a press release issued by the Chinese embassy here.