It is rare to see such a large number of top diplomats and dignitaries gather at an occasion as was the case when the new Chinese embassy was opened in Islamabad last week.

“It is the largest embassy compound in the world,” Ambassador Sun Weidong informed the guests in his speech, and he thanked the government for having allocated such a large plot to the embassy, situated at the back of the Diplomatic Enclave near Quaid-i-Azam University.

The chief guests were many: Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Minister of Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, Minister of State and Frontier Provinces Abdul Qadir Baloch, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Pervaiz Rashid and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

The new embassy building and vacant compound space give room for the foreseen expansion needed in future, as the cooperation between the two countries grow. Today, there are only about 70 staff members at the embassy, including local staff.

“The workload will grow in the coming years,” said one Chinese diplomat. His colleague dealing with visa issues said there was already much to do due to many visits to China by Pakistani businessmen, students and others.

“But we are glad this is the case,” he added, as he told visitors not to forget to pick up their gift bags with booklets and a panda doll for their children.

“It is made in China; that goes without saying,” he smiled.

Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2015

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