China looking to corner India? Beijing to extend CPEC to Afghanistan
Connecting Pakistan and China crucial for development in Afghanistan, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
In Short
- China-Pak-Afghan trilateral meeting held at China
- China said both Pakistan and China are looking to work for development of Afghanistan
- Indian opposes CPEC as it passes through PoK
China, which on Tuesday hosted the first ever trilateral foreign ministers meet with Afghanistan and Pakistan, said it had discussed extending China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan, a move that will concern India.
Following talks in Beijing with Afghan Foreign Minister Rabbani and Pakistan Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif, Chinese FM Wang Yi told reporters that Afghanistan has urgent need to develop and improve people's lives and hopes it can join inter-connectivity initiatives.
"So China and Pakistan are willing to look at with Afghanistan, on the basis of win-win, mutually beneficial principles, using an appropriate means to extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to Afghanistan," he was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Wang said all sides would "first reach a gradual consensus, tackling easier, smaller projects first", suggesting Afghanistan was willing to explore the idea.
India has strongly objected to CPEC as it passes through PoK, but China is seeking to bring other countries on board and dubbed CPEC as "a flagship" project of President Xi's pet One Belt, One Road plan.
Khawaja said that "the successful implementation of CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) projects will serve as a model for enhancing connectivity and cooperation through similar projects with neighbouring countries, including Afghanistan, Iran and with central and west Asia."
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