Pak FM Bilawal hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi

BEIJING: Pakistan's newlyappointed Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari held talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Sunday in the Chinese city of Guangzhou to firm up the all-weather ties between the two countries.

This is Bilawal's maiden visit to China after he took over as foreign minister following the fall of the Imran Khan-led government last month.

Bilawal meets with the Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang in Guangzhou, Pakistan's staterun APP news agency tweeted.

Their meeting was held in Guangzhou as Beijing is currently under semi-lockdown to contain the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the COVID-19.

"Landed in Guangzhou on my first bilateral visit. Today also marks the 71st anniversary of establishment of diplomatic ties between Pakistan and China. Looking forward to meeting Chinese State Councilor & Foreign Minister Wang Yi for in-depth discussions on Pakistan-China relations," Bilawal tweeted.

The 33-year old, whose mother Benazir Bhutto and grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto were former prime ministers, is just back from New York where he held talks with the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and discussed strengthening the US-Pakistan relations which deteriorated during the previous Imran Khan regime.

In his interviews to the media after his talks with Blinken, Bilawal ruled out that Pakistan's growing relationship with the US would hurt its ties to Beijing.

Bilawal is accompanied by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar and other senior officials.

Ahead of his visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Saturday congratulated Pakistan and China on the 71st anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.

"Congratulations! May 21 is the 71st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. FM Bilawal will visit China from May 21. #Thisisdoublehappiness," he tweeted from his official account.