Islamabad– India should review its “short-sighted” approach towards the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project and benefit from it, instead of criticising it, Pakistani Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal has said.
“CPEC is purely an economic development project that would bring prosperity. India should get benefit from the project rather than pursuing unnecessary criticism,” Iqbal was cited as saying by Dawn online on Friday.
The CPEC connects China’s Kashgar in Xinjiang province with Pakistan’s Gwadar port in Balochistan through a network of roads, railways and highways. India strongly objects to the route of the corridor, which goes through Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Iqbal said India’s reaction to the CPEC was “not positive and sooner or later it would realise that the project would benefit the entire region”.
“The CPEC would bring prosperity to the region, including China and Pakistan,” he added.
The Minister further said “the resolution of the issues didn’t lie in tensions and disputes among regional countries”. He said that “India held the key to peace in South Asia and that country could not progress without cooperation”.
Iqbal said the future of Asian countries depended on promotion of trade and commerce and connectivity through transport corridors. “Transport corridors help connect the countries and play a pivotal role in economic integration, trade development and regional connectivity across the globe.” (IANS)
