中文
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif meets with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, in Islamabad, Pakistan, August 21, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
By Imran Khalid
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's Pakistan visit, after his stop in India, should not be perceived as routine diplomacy. It carried an unmistakable message: The China-Pakistan friendship remains steadfast, resilient and forward-looking.
It is a relationship that has consistently delivered, regardless of shifting winds in global politics. For Pakistanis, this is not simply about strategy; it is about trust forged through decades of solidarity in both war and peace.
If there is one project that embodies the depth of bilateral ties, it is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Often called the flagship of the Belt and Road Initiative, the CPEC has helped reshape Pakistan's economic landscape by expanding road networks, modernizing ports and addressing chronic energy shortages.
Wang emphasized that both sides need to accelerate building "an upgraded Version 2.0 of the CPEC, focus on agriculture, industry and mining, promote mutually beneficial cooperation in Gwadar Port, industrial parks, connectivity and high technology." These projects do more than fuel GDP figures. They improve livelihoods - powering homes once in dark, creating jobs in newly built industrial zones and opening pathways for Pakistani exports to wider markets.
Critics often argue that global trade is slowing, investment is uncertain and rivalries cast shadows over connectivity. But the CPEC's steady progress, even amid regional turbulence, demonstrates that purposeful cooperation can prevail. For Pakistan, it is not an exaggeration to say that the CPEC has been both a lifeline in hard times and a launchpad for future growth.
Beyond the large-scale projects, Chinese investments in Pakistan are increasingly focused on the human dimension. Scholarships, vocational training programs, healthcare collaborations and digital skill partnerships represent a more people-centered approach. This shift broadens the constituency of goodwill: Ordinary Pakistanis who see tangible improvements in their daily lives attribute them directly to China's presence.
Wang's visit reinforced this trajectory. Discussions in Islamabad highlighted not only new energy and infrastructure projects but also initiatives in education, climate resilience and digital transformation. By embedding itself in Pakistan's long-term social development, China is showing that its commitment extends to the very fabric of society.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari (L) meets with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Islamabad, Pakistan, August 21, 2025. [Photo/Xinhua]
The fact that Wang arrived in Islamabad after visiting New Delhi should not be overlooked. For decades, Beijing has sought to balance its ties with both South Asian neighbors, but the depth and reliability of its relationship with Pakistan remain unmatched. For Islamabad, this visit reaffirms that in the shifting sands of South Asian geopolitics, China remains the most reliable anchor.
What elevates the China-Pakistan relationship beyond the bilateral is its resonance in the wider world. The two nations’ cooperation stands as a model of how states with different sizes, systems and trajectories can work together on the basis of mutual respect and benefit.
For the Global South, the friendship is a demonstration that sovereignty and partnership may not be traded away for development. For the broader international community, it is a reminder that pragmatic collaboration can survive even in an era of intensified geopolitical competition. As the West grapples with its own divisions and uncertainties, the consistency of China-Pakistan ties stands out as a stabilizing contrast.
In the grand sweep of South Asia's history, alliances have often shifted, promises have often been broken. The China-Pakistan relationship stands out precisely because it has defied this pattern. Wang was received not merely as a visiting foreign minister in Islamabad but as the representative of a partner that has stood by Pakistan through thick and thin.
For Pakistan, the visit was both reassurance and renewal: Reassurance that in moments of trial, its closest friend remains firmly by its side, and renewal of a partnership that looks not only to survive the present but to thrive in the future.
Imran Khalid, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a freelance columnist on international affairs.
