ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan, on Friday, said Pakistan and China have reaffirmed their commitment to further deepening their “All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership” through enhanced bilateral, regional, and multilateral cooperation.
Addressing the weekly press briefing, Foreign Office Spokesperson Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan stated that Chinese Foreign Minister and Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China, Wang Yi, visited Islamabad on August 21, 2025, on the invitation of Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, to co-chair the 6th Pakistan–China Foreign Ministers’ Strategic Dialogue.
“Both sides comprehensively reviewed the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, including CPEC Phase-II, trade and economic ties, multilateral cooperation, people-to-people exchanges, and important regional and global issues,” Ambassador Khan said. He added that the two ministers agreed to maintain close coordination and communication at bilateral and multilateral forums.
During his visit, Foreign Minister Wang Yi also called on President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.
In his meeting with the President, Asif Ali Zardari expressed gratitude for China’s “consistent support for Pakistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national development,” and appreciated Beijing’s principled stance on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute, he added. He also highlighted the strategic significance of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as part of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.
During the Chinese Foreign Minister’s interaction with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, both leaders reaffirmed mutual support on core national interests. The Prime Minister reiterated Pakistan’s resolve to expand cooperation with China in trade, ICT, agriculture, industrialization, mines and minerals, and other sectors under CPEC Phase-II, he added.
Ambassador Khan added that during the Chinese Foreign Minister’s meeting with the Chief of Army Staff, discussions focused on regional security, counterterrorism, and defense cooperation. Both sides underscored their resolve to strengthen coordination at regional and international platforms.
The FO spokesperson said the visit was part of regular high-level exchanges aimed at consolidating the Pakistan–China partnership.
Ambassador Khan also informed that the 6th Trilateral Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, China, and Afghanistan was held on August 20, 2025, in Kabul. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Afghanistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi participated.
“The three sides committed to strengthening joint counterterrorism efforts and agreed to enhance collaboration in trade, transit, health, education, culture, combating drug trafficking, and extending CPEC to Afghanistan,” he said.Buy vitamins and supplements
On the sidelines, DPM/FM Dar held a bilateral meeting with Acting Foreign Minister Muttaqi, noting progress in political and economic areas but raising concerns over insufficient cooperation in counterterrorism.
The FO further highlighted that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar paid an official visit to the United Kingdom (17–19 August 2025), where he met: Hamish Faulksner, UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Middle East, Afghanistan, and Pakistan; Several British-Pakistani Members of Parliament, including Mohammad Yasin, Tahir Ali, Imran Hussain, Ayub Khan, and Adnan Hussain; Lord Qurban Hussain and Kashmiri community leaders; Baroness Shirley Botchwey, Commonwealth Secretary-General, who accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan.
During the visit, DPM/FM Dar also inaugurated digital land record services and a one-window passport system at the Pakistan High Commission in London to facilitate the diaspora. He also addressed the British Pakistani Lawyers Forum, warning against India’s unlawful attempts to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, terming them an “existential threat” to Pakistan.
The spokesperson confirmed that on August 12, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Dar met Gregory LoGerfo, Acting Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. State Department, as part of the Pakistan–U.S. Counterterrorism Dialogue. Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to combating terrorism, including threats posed by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), ISIS-Khorasan, and other groups.
