Pakistani Prime Minister Leaves For Four-day China Visit

LAHORE, May 23 (Bernama-APP) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif departed for Hangzhou on Saturday in the first phase of his four-day official visit to China aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation and promoting investment under CPEC Phase-II, Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Minister for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja, and Special Assistant Tariq Fatemi accompanied the Prime Minister.

During his stay in Hangzhou, the Prime Minister will meet the Party Secretary of Zhejiang Province and participate in a business forum organised to promote cooperation between Pakistani and Chinese companies under CPEC Phase-II.

He will also attend a ceremony for the exchange of agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs).

The Prime Minister is also scheduled to hold meetings with CEOs of leading Chinese companies.

He will visit the headquarters of Alibaba and participate in a ceremony for the signing of cooperation MoUs.

Later, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will travel to Beijing, where he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.

He will also attend an event marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China.

The Prime Minister will further meet heads of prominent Chinese companies and visit the China Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS).

Officials said the visit is expected to open new avenues of cooperation between Pakistan and China, particularly in trade, investment and industrial collaboration under CPEC Phase-II.

-- BERNAMA-APP