China's western push strengthens Pakistan links
China and Pakistan are expected to discuss long-pending plans to accelerate construction of rail-lines and a pipeline from Kashgar in China's west to the port of Gwadar on the Persian Gulf, during Premier Wen Jiabao's three-day visit to Islamabad which began on Friday.
The plan, officials and analysts say, is bringing new importance to Beijing's ties with Islamabad, given that Pakistan will play a crucial role, both from the point of view of diplomacy and simply, geography, in linking China with Afghanistan and West Asia.
Trucks carrying construction equipment clog the roads, as construction cranes work day and night to transform the historic old town into a sprawling Economic Development Zone — the “Shenzhen of the West”, as one Chinese official says, referring to China's first Special Economic Zone.
“One of the most important reasons why we value our relations with Pakistan is that the country can play the role of a bridge between China and the Muslim world,” Hu Shisheng, a scholar at the China Institutes for Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) told The Hindu in a recent interview ahead of Mr. Wen's visit.
Kashgar's transformation from an ancient Silk Road town to a modern trading hub is gathering pace, said Muhammed Ahmed Khan of the Kashgar-based Pakistan Business and Investment Promotion Council, in an interview during a visit to the city earlier this year.
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