- CPEC is a multi-billion dollar project of China, it is a dream of China, through which China wants to become the world’s first economic power
A Pakistani minister has recently made a statement that China must have definitely scratched its head after hearing it. A few days ago, Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal had said regarding China’s ambitious project China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that Pakistan has not benefited from this project.
It is worth mentioning that China has stolen billions of dollars in this project so far. Therefore, this statement of the Pakistani minister has made the dragon’s mercury rise.
In a speech given at a program, Iqbal said that Pakistan’s economy has repeatedly lost development opportunities, and what is called a game changer. They have not been able to take advantage of CPEC.
They have blamed former Prime Minister Imran Khan for making this project futile. His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party government has accused China of stifling capital investment.
China’s CPEC project is one of the important projects of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It was launched in 2013. Of this multi-dollar project of China, it will connect Gwadar in Balochistan to Kashgar city of Uyghur Autonomous Region in China’s northwestern province of Xinjiang with a network of roads, railways and pipelines. Its estimated construction is about 3,000 km. A report on it says that the project has been suspended since 2018. Therefore, only a little benefit has been received. But not enough benefit has been received.
The second phase of CPEC was intended to accelerate the necessary industrialization by transferring Chinese industries to Pakistan. Therefore, the aim was to increase exports, but that plan could not be started.
