BEIJING, Oct 21: China on Sunday dispatched relief goods worth Rs94 million to Pakistan for the help of Afghan refugees.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman told APP that the relief assistance had been provided to strengthen the efforts of government to mitigate the sufferings of the Afghan people.

He said the Chinese government would continue to help Pakistan overcome the problems being faced by it in the wake of the military strikes in Afghanistan.

A convoy of 17 trucks carrying the relief goods, including tents and blankets, left Urumqi on Sunday. Communist Party Deputy Secretary Ashat Karimu and Xinjiang Deputy Governor Liu Yie were present on the occasion. Pakistan was represented by the Pakistan embassy’s deputy head Syed Hasan Javed.

Ashat Karimu said the assistance reflected the strong bond of friendship between the people of the two countries.

Mr Javed said the people of Afghanistan were suffering hard and they needed the help of international community.

He also referred to the growing relations between the two countries, which he said, always withstood the test of the time and proved productive for the betterment of their people.

Goods worth Rs80 million and Rs14 million will be handed over to the government and the UNCHR respectively for distribution among the refugees in Peshawar.

Northern Areas administration sources in Gilgit said on Saturday that a representative of Sino-trance company of Xing province, Young Jeming, will hand over Chinese government’s assistance dispatched via Khunjarab pass on Karakoram Highway to the head of UNCHR based at Peshawar.—APP