BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that he expects Beijing and Islamabad to take the opportunity of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties to open up a brighter prospect for bilateral relations.
In a telephone conversation on Saturday with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Wang said the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership between China and Pakistan is unique, and bilateral relations have become a model of friendly cooperation between countries.
Wang noted that over the past 70 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties, the two sides have firmly supported each other on issues concerning each other's core interests.
Wang stressed that China will continue to stand firmly with Pakistan in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Beijing is also is ready to work with Pakistan to step up efforts to implement the outcomes of the video conference of Foreign Ministers of China, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka on Covid-19 and play a bigger role in regional economic recovery, he added.
Noting that Pakistan has an important traditional influence on the Afghan issue, Wang said China recognises and appreciates Pakistan's efforts to achieve peace in Afghanistan and calls for all parties to reach a political arrangement acceptable to all sides under the "Afghan-led and Afghan-owned" framework.
For his part, Qureshi congratulated the landing of China's Tianwen-1 probe on Mars, and said bilateral relations have achieved fruitful results since the establishment of diplomatic ties.
He said his country hopes to jointly celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries and push forward the all-weather strategic cooperative partnership with China.
Qureshi thanked China for its strong support for Pakistan's fight against Covid-19 and expressed hope that his country would continue to enhance anti-pandemic cooperation with China.
Pakistan appreciates the joint statement on the Afghan issue issued at the China+Central Asia foreign ministers' meeting, and maintains that US and NATO troops should leave Afghanistan in an orderly and responsible manner, and supports Afghanistan's neighbouring countries in playing a bigger role in pushing forward the peace process in Afghanistan, he added. (IANS)