The PML(N), he maintained, would take a tough stand on changes proposed for the CPEC.Ĭhinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who was in Islamabad on a three-day visit last week, held meetings with Prime Minister Imran Khan, Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. He claimed such decisions could not be made by the cabinet and that Parliament was the right forum to discuss the issue. “How can a Commerce minister decide the fate of CPEC project, which is a game-changer for the Pakistan economy? The sovereign agreements between the two countries are binding on the government to follow,” Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Mushahidullah Khan told Asia Times. But with sentiments regarding CPEC running high, Dawood’s clarification failed to pacify the opposition parties. On Monday, Dawood claimed the newspaper had quoted him out of context and that parts of his interview were irrelevant. He accused the former Sharif government of not negotiating conscientiously, by giving Chinese companies unprecedented tax breaks. The paper had quoted him saying that the CPEC operation would be put on hold for a year or two, and that during this period its terms and conditions would be renegotiated.ĭawood reportedly said the tenure of the project would be extended for a further five years to ease pressure on dwindling foreign exchange resources. Their statement came in response to an article in the Financial Times, which quoted an interview with Abdul Razak Dawood, the adviser to the Pakistan prime minister on commerce, textile, industry, and investment. Taking his cue from Malaysia, Dawood had hinted that the Pakistani government would revisit some CPEC agreements. This week China and Pakistan reaffirmed their commitment to the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), with Beijing reportedly agreeing to take a closer look at some of the agreements finalized by the Nawaz Sharif-led Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) government.
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