China cornerstone of our foreign policy: Pak army chief in Beijing

China to start building on Scarborough Shoal

China will begin preparatory work this year for an environmental monitoring station on Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea as two US senators introduced a bill to impose sanctions on its activities in the disputed waterway.

The station, along with other infrastructure, form part of island restoration efforts planned for 2017, Xiao Jie, the mayor of what Beijing calls Sansha City, an administrative base for disputed islands and reefs it controls, said. PAKISTANI ARMY chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa said that his country views relations with China as the “cornerstone of its foreign policy”. He added that Pakistan’s army will always be a “staunch supporter” of this friendship during his first visit to China recently, Xinhua reported.

A statement of Pakistani military’s PR arm, the Inter-services Public Relations (ISPR), said that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Bajwa in Beijing and “expressed complete understanding of challenges’’ Pakistan faces, “its geo-political relevance and contributions towards regional peace and stability’’. The ISPR quoted Wang saying that China appreciates Pakistan’s efforts to maintain good relationships with its neighbours including India and Afghanistan despite challenges. “He reiterated Chinese full spectrum support to Pakistan,” the statement said.

The ISPR said that Wang appreciated Pakistan’s efforts for realisation of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor that is a part of China’s ambitious One Belt and One Road Initiative.

Bajwa thanked China for sending an army contingent to participate in the Pakistan Day Parade on March 23. Chinese and Turkish troops will for the time take part in the parade in Islamabad.