US$46 billion Pakistan-China Corridor will not use Asian bank funds
US$46 billion plan to link Pakistani port with Xinjiang will not involve Asian bank or Silk Road Fund, says diplomat ahead of Xi's visit
Beijing does not plan to use either the new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank or its Silk Road Fund to finance the US$46 billion Pakistan-China economic corridor, with money to come from both countries instead, a senior diplomat said yesterday.
President Xi Jinping's first state visit to Pakistan on Monday is expected to focus on the corridor, a planned network of roads, railways and energy projects linking Pakistan's deepwater Gwadar port with Xinjiang . The corridor would shorten the route for energy imports, bypassing the Strait of Malacca, a bottleneck at risk of blockade in wartime.
"Several different facets will be utilised for the financing of these projects. Both sides will increase cooperation, to jointly provide financing support," assistant foreign minister Liu Jianchao said.
"As to whether the AIIB or the Silk Road Fund will be used, at present these [projects] are being looked into, or are in the planning stages. So at the moment we are not considering using these mechanisms or platforms or financial organisations to provide financing."
The trip could also yield a commitment to step up coordination over security in Afghanistan, and the two countries may seal a US$5 billion deal to sell Pakistan eight Chinese submarines.
Xi was originally due to visit Pakistan in September but political unrest, including protests led by Pakistani opposition politician Imran Khan, kept him away. Instead, Xi's trip took him to India, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
There had been speculation that Islamabad would invite Xi for its national military parade on March 23 - about two months after US President Barack Obama attended India's Republic Day parade, but Xi did not attend.
Liu said Xi would be travelling on Monday and Tuesday with a large business delegation and would oversee the signing of deals covering the energy and transport industries.
"Ground has already broken on some projects, so we can now say the China-Pakistan economic corridor is in the implementation stage," Liu said.
Wang Dehua, a professor of South Asian studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Strategic Studies, said the visit was intended to show that "China has high regard for its neighbours".
"Both nations have great expectations of each other in terms of the 'One Belt, One Road' initiative. Pakistan is a key post for the connectivity plan," Wang said.
Zahid Anwar, a political science professor at the University of Peshawar, said Xi and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif would also discuss security in Afghanistan.
Beijing has expressed concerns about terrorists from Pakistan and Afghanistan entering Xinjiang, and has pledged to help broker talks between political factions in Afghanistan.
"Afghanistan is of converging interest between China and Pakistan.
"Both nations want to maintain peace and stability in the region," he said.
