BRI Forum
ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar is embarking on a two-day official visit to China next week.
The Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch stated this in her weekly briefing. The FO spokesperson disclosed that PM Kakar’s visit to China is in response to an invitation from the Chinese president to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar of will engage in meetings with global leaders on the sidelines of the BRI forum.
China is set to host the 3rd summit on international cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) on October 17-18 in Beijing.
The summit is expected to be attended by numerous world leaders, including President Vladimir Putin, as China has extended invitations to leaders from over 50 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and Latin America.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a comprehensive plan aimed at establishing global infrastructure and energy networks. China initiated this project a decade ago with the goal of connecting Asia to Africa and Europe via both land and maritime routes.
According to the foreign ministry, China has signed Belt and Road cooperation agreements with more than 150 countries and over 30 international organizations.
The inaugural Belt and Road Forum was held in Beijing in May 2017, featuring the participation of high-ranking officials from Russia, China, and 28 countries spanning Eurasia, Africa, and Latin America.
The second forum took place in the Chinese capital in April 2019. Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the Belt and Road initiative in 2013.
Meanwhile, China said that its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) infrastructure project has generated an impressive two trillion dollars in contracts worldwide. It is equivalent to some of the world’s largest economies.
The China’s State Council released a white paper this week on the BRI achievements. It revealed that countries participating in the initiative owe more than $300 billion to the Export-Import Bank of China (Eximbank).
This month marks the 10th anniversary of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a project that has seen Beijing invest a trillion dollars in projects worldwide, making it a defining geopolitical endeavor for President Xi Jinping.
Critics have raised concerns that China may be luring lower-income countries into debt traps by offering massive, unsustainable loans.
The total value of signed construction contracts with BRI partners now stands at two trillion dollars, roughly equivalent to the economies of Russia or Canada.
