Khawaja Asif holds meeting with President Xi at Great Hall

BEIJING: Foreign Minister, Khawaja Muhammad Asif along with foreign ministers of other Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member countries met with Chinese President, Xi Jinping here at the Great Hall on Monday.

Welcoming the SCO foreign ministers, President Xi said that the SCO sets a new pilot model for mutual respect, as well as a just, fair, win-win relationship, since its founding, 17 years ago.

President Xi Jinping underlined the close friendship between China and Pakistan and appreciated Pakistan’s role as a new member of the SCO.

The foreign minister conveyed the warm sentiments of friendship and brotherhood from the people of Pakistan to the people of China.

Khawaja Asif highlighted that Pakistan and China were all-weather strategic cooperative partners whose bonds of mutual trust and respect were eternal.

Appreciating the common vision of a peaceful and prosperous neighbourhood, the foreign minister underscored the importance of President Xi Jinping’s vision of the Belt and Road Initiative which have received wide international support.

He highlighted that together, Pakistan and China have proven the viability of the Belt and Road Initiative through its flagship project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj of India, Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov of Kazakhstan, Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldayev of Kyrgyzstan, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov of Russia, Foreign Minister Sirodjidin Aslov of Tajikistan, Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov of Uzbekistan, Secretary-General of the SCO Rashid Alimov and Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure Yevgeniy Sysoyev were present.

The foreign minister is currently on a two-day visit to attend the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting. The meeting will finalize the preparations for the forthcoming SCO Heads of State Council in Qingdao.

The SCO is an important forum for global and regional peace and security and promoting mutually beneficial cooperation between member states. Pakistan joined the organization in June 2017.