CPEC moves into second phase with ‘simple’ celebration

China and Pakistan decided to accelerate the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, hailing the progress on development initiatives in the decade since the project’s launch in 2013. In a special ceremony held to commemorate 10 years of CPEC on Monday, six new documents were signed for joint cooperation. The celebrations, however, were kept simple out of respect for the victims of the Bajaur terrorist attack. Earlier in the day, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, who is on an official visit to attend the celebrations as a special representative of President Xi Jinping, was conferred with the Hilal-i-Pakistan award. He also met President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In the ceremony held at the Prime Minister House, officials from both countries signed an agreement on the Joint Cooperation Committee on CPEC, an MoU on establishing an export exchange mechanism within the framework of CPEC, a protocol of phytosanitary requirements for the export of dry chillies from Pakistan to China and a document on the final report on the feasibility study of the Karakoram Highway Phase-II realignment.