As the People’s Republic of China marks the 77th anniversary of its founding, China and Pakistan jointly commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations. These dual historic milestones not only embody the profound traditional friendship between the two peoples but also highlight the far-reaching significance of the Belt and Road Initiative in advancing regional connectivity and shared development in the new era. In 2013, President Xi Jinping put forward the major initiative of jointly building the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Thirteen years on, this vision has evolved from a blueprint into tangible reality and from a Chinese proposal into a widely embraced platform for international cooperation. It has profoundly reshaped the landscape of regional connectivity, with Pakistan remaining one of its most steadfast partners and the host of its flagship project.
Rooted in the spirit of the ancient Silk Road, the Belt and Road Initiative responds to the contemporary trend of peace, development, cooperation and mutual benefit. At the time of its launch, the global economy was struggling with weak recovery, significant infrastructure gaps and uneven development. China advanced the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, with the aim of building a community with a shared future for mankind. Over the past thirteen years, the initiative has progressed from strategic planning to concrete implementation and from quantitative expansion to high-quality development. Early efforts focused on hard connectivity projects in transport, energy and ports. Cooperation later expanded into unimpeded trade, financial integration and people-to-people bonds, while steadily deepening engagement in the green, digital and health Silk Roads.
To date, more than 150 countries and over 30 international organizations have signed cooperation documents, covering Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and Oceania. These partners account for nearly three-quarters of the world’s population and more than half of global economic output. Cumulative investment and engineering cooperation have exceeded the trillion-dollar level, markedly improving infrastructure, trade facilitation and employment opportunities in participating countries.
Regional connectivity has undergone a profound transformation as a result. In the past, many developing countries found it difficult to integrate into global value chains due to poor transport links, power shortages and high logistics costs. Through the construction of railways, highways, ports, pipelines, communication networks and industrial parks, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has broken down geographical and economic barriers. Landmark projects such as the regular operation of China-Europe freight trains, the opening of the China-Laos Railway, the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway and the revitalization of the Port of Piraeus have shortened distances in both time and space, reduced trade costs and fostered new economic corridors and growth poles. At the same time, the initiative has promoted policy coordination and alignment of rules, expanded networks of free trade agreements, and supported transitions toward green energy and the digital economy. Connectivity has thus extended from the physical sphere to institutional frameworks, standards and people-to-people ties. Amid rising unilateralism and protectionism, this open platform has offered developing countries in the Global South diversified choices and development opportunities, embodying the true spirit of multilateralism.
Within the overall framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, Pakistan occupies an irreplaceable and distinctive position. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is widely recognized as the flagship and model project of the initiative. Since its official launch in 2013, CPEC has adhered to government guidance, enterprise leadership, market-oriented operations and mutual benefit. It has prioritized energy, transport infrastructure, Gwadar Port and industrial parks. To date, dozens of projects have been completed and put into operation, with cumulative direct investment of approximately USD 25 billion. These efforts have added around 8,000 megawatts of power generation capacity, constructed several hundred kilometers of expressways and trunk roads, built nearly 900 kilometers of core transmission lines, and created more than 200,000 direct jobs. The results have effectively eased Pakistan’s long-standing electricity shortages, improved north-south transport bottlenecks, and provided a solid foundation for industrial development and people’s livelihoods.
Gwadar Port has gradually transformed into a regional logistics and industrial hub. The inauguration of the New Gwadar International Airport has further enhanced Pakistan’s strategic position facing the Arabian Sea and wider markets. The improvement of the western route road network has more closely linked Balochistan and other regions with the country’s economic main arteries. Entering its second phase, known as CPEC 2.0, cooperation is shifting from large-scale infrastructure toward industrial collaboration, special economic zones, agricultural modernization, mineral development, information technology and the green energy transition. Special economic zones such as Rashakai are attracting investment, and the two sides have signed new cooperation documents in artificial intelligence, agricultural mechanization and cold-chain logistics. This clearly demonstrates the progression from hard connectivity to deeper economic integration.
Over the past 75 years, China-Pakistan relations have withstood the tests of changing times and maintained a high level of all-weather strategic cooperative partnership. Regardless of shifts in the international landscape, the two countries have firmly supported each other on issues concerning their respective core interests and advanced side by side on the path of development. The “iron brothers” friendship is reflected not only in political mutual trust and security cooperation but also in concrete improvements to people’s well-being and shared prosperity. China has been Pakistan’s largest trading partner for many consecutive years and an important source of investment. Bilateral trade has remained at a high level, people-to-people exchanges have grown increasingly close, and tens of thousands of Pakistani students have pursued studies in China, further consolidating the foundation of public support.
Standing at a new historical starting point and looking ahead, the Belt and Road Initiative will continue to pursue high-quality development, placing greater emphasis on green, inclusive, sustainable and high-standard cooperation so as to better serve the global development agenda. As the flagship project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor will play an even greater role in building a closer China-Pakistan community with a shared future. It will support Pakistan in achieving its goals of industrialization and modernization and inject positive energy into regional stability and prosperity. The peoples of China and Pakistan have every reason to believe that, under the joint efforts of the leaders and all sectors of the two countries, the profound friendship of 75 years will write an even more splendid chapter on the new journey of the Belt and Road Initiative and make fresh and greater contributions to building a community with a shared future for mankind.
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