BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, along with his spouse, visited Pakistan Pavilion, set up at the Workers Stadium on Sunday to collect donations for the villages of China’s Yunnan province.
Pakistan Ambassador to China Masood Khalid and other senior officials of the Pakistan Embassy welcomed the distinguished guests at the pavilion organised in collaboration with Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Wang Yi appreciated the efforts of the Pakistan Embassy for the noble cause and also took a keen interest in Pakistani culture, its handicrafts and particularly Pakistan-made footballs.
The ambassador commended the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs for holding the annual international charity event. He said that five stalls had been set up to collect donations for “International Charity Sale for Healthy Villages in Yunnan, China” and added that Pakistani handicrafts, cuisines, costumes and the most popular item, Pakistani footballs – exported for international competitions – had been displayed.
Khalid said that the Pakistan Embassy made substantial contributions to the charity last year and hoped that it would be able to raise money this year too.
About Pakistan-China relations in the future, he remarked that China’s two-stage development plan announced by President Xi Jinping was important for future development.
Under the plan, targets had been set to take China towards a prosperous society in the next 30 years, he added.
On the inclusion of the Belt and Road Initiative in the Constitution of China, he said that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was a flagship project of BRI and therefore, this process was beneficial for CPEC. He expressed confidence that this development would further promote Pak-China friendship.
Pakistan Embassy Head of Chancery Asim Ali Khan said that the Pakistan Pavilion had been set up with the cooperation of Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs so that donations could be collected for the villages in Yunnan province.
He said that this event would help promote Pakistani culture among the Chinese people, further enhancing friendship and brotherhood. Earlier, during the opening ceremony of the charity show, an exquisite performance by Chinese artists enthralled the audience.