ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday rubbished reports that Beijing had halted payments on any of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in the country.
FO Spokesperson Dr Muhammad Faisal, during a weekly briefing, said there was no news from Beijing that the Chinese government was halting funding for any of the projects, adding that execution of payments takes place in specific manner.
The FO’s denial comes days after Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal had said that China had halted the release of funds for three CPEC projects till the revision of its ‘financial mechanism’ by Beijing,
The spokesman said Indian arms buildup has pushed region into arms race fomenting instability in the whole region.
Pakistan’s armed forces are ready to defend the country’s borders in case of any threat, the spokesman said. The Spokesperson said we have received response from India regarding visit of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav’s mother and wife and they will come to Pakistan and will have a meeting with him on 25th of this month. He said Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has been asked to issue visas to the two. He said full security would be provided to the mother and wife of Kulbhushan Jadhav during their visit to Pakistan.
He said Pakistan has submitted a comprehensive counter memorial document before the International Court of Justice regarding the Kulbhushan Jadhav case covering all legal aspects.
On Afghan situation, Dr Muhammad Faisal told reporters that ungoverned areas in Afghanistan not only pose threat to stability of Afghanistan but security of the whole region.
He said Pakistan has expressed its concerns as over forty-three percent area of Afghanistan is out of the control of Afghan Government and attracts terrorist groups from across the world including ISIS.
Pakistan expects that the Afghan Government and the Resolute Support Mission will take action to bring these territories under control, he added. The Spokesperson briefed that OIC summit in Istanbul has rejected in strongest terms and declared null and void the decision of US administration regarding Al Quds Al Sharif. INP