Premier Li Keqiang said on April 10 that China is ready to work with Pakistan to complete a long-term plan by the end of this year to build a bilateral economic corridor.

In a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia annual conference, Li said the two countries agreed to make the building of the corridor the focus of bilateral practical cooperation, and the consensus is conducive to forging a China-Pakistan “community of shared destiny.”

The corridor connecting Kashgar in China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to the southwestern Pakistani port of Gwadar was proposed in an agreement between the two countries reached during Li’s visit to Pakistan in May 2013.

China will also work with Pakistan to provide financial support for the construction of the corridor, he said.

Premier Li Keqiang (3rd R) meets with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (3rd L), in Boao, south China’s Hainan province, April 10, 2014. Muhammad Nawaz Sharif came here to attend the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2014. [Photo/Xinhua]

China would like to enhance cooperation with Pakistan on the fight against terrorism, and hopes Pakistan will provide security for Chinese organizations and personnel in Pakistan, Li said.

Sharif said Pakistan will focus on promoting the corridor construction and spare no efforts to safeguard the safety of the Chinese people and organizations in Pakistan.

Sharif said Pakistan is ready to further strategic cooperation with China and noted the relationship with China is the “cornerstone” of Pakistan’s diplomacy and the two countries are all-weather and long-tested friends.

Pakistan will make concerted efforts with China to fully implement cooperative deals between the two sides, he said.