GILGIT: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that re-opening of Khunjerab pass will increase bilateral trade between Pakistan and China and vowed to beef up all projects related to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) across the country.

In a statement, PM Sharif welcomed the completion of arrangements for resumption of trade through the pass between Pakistan and China after a lapse of three years.

The speed of CPEC projects will be doubled than it was in 2018, he said, adding that he vowed to beef up work on all CPEC-related projects across the country.

The love and support of China’s leadership and people for Pakistan is unforgettable, the prime minister pointed out, and paid tribute to officials and team members of both countries for resumption of the Khunjerab route.

Vows to speed up work on projects related to CPEC

Through a twitter post on Sunday, Ambassador of Pakistan in China Moinul Haque said: “The resumption of operations via Khunjerab pass will serve to further bolster China and Pakistan trade and people-to-people linkages. The two sides are now working to keep the border crossing open all year round. After three years, Pakistan China border Khunjerab Pass will reopen (today) on Monday.”

The Khunjerab pass had been closed in November 2019 to contain Covid-19 transmission, however the border was opened for specific times with strict Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) during the last three years.

Bilateral trade with China and CPEC activities remained suspended during the last three years, which left thousands in GB’s population jobless.

Sources say the Chinese government has reopened all trade activities with other countries, adding that Khunjerab pass remains open from April to November under an agreement signed between Pakistan and China.

Pakistan and Chinese authorities are working towards making Khunjerab pass operational throughout the year. They said that making the Khunjerab pass a year-long operation has been one of the targets for the region in 2023.

If the initiative is approved, it is expected to drive cross-border trade and business.

According to Chinese media, in the three years since the spread of coronavirus, the Khunjerab pass, like all other land crossings in China at the forefront of guarding against imported cases, shut down its passenger pass entirely. The port opened for occasional emergency cargo transportation.

“But this time, cross-border drivers can drive their truck heading towards Pakistan directly, unlike during the epidemic when they had to leave their cargo in designated areas after rounds of disinfection, with the Pakistani side coming to pick them up the following day,” Zhang Xiaobo, the customs director at the Khunjerab Port, said.

“We expect to witness a huge compensatory growth of cross-border trade and transportation this year at the Khunjerab Pass,” Ye Hailin, deputy director-general at the National Institute of International Strategy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) told journalists.

All arrangements at both sides of the border have been completed. On Sunday, officials of the GB government visited Khunjerab pass to review the arrangements for arrival of cargo from China.

Machines had removed snow from Karakoram Highway at Khunjerab top.

GB’s home department has started work on issuing border pass to local residents so they could travel till Xinjiang.

Published in Dawn, April 3rd, 2023