A top Chinese government diplomat said Beijing was not indebted to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The top Chinese government diplomat on Saturday defended the Beijing Belt and Road Infrastructure Initiative during a visit to Pakistan, rejecting criticism that Pakistan is heavily indebted.

State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi was in Pakistan for a three-day visit at the first high-level meetings between neighbors since the arrival of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Beijing has pledged $ 57 billion in loans to Pakistan as part of its extensive "Belt and Road" program, strengthening ties at a time when Islamabad's relations with Washington are collapsing over how to deal with Islamist militants in Pakistan. war in Afghanistan.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in July that the eventual rescue of the International Monetary Fund by Pakistan should not be funded by China. Chinese lenders.

Wang said the Pakistani part of the Belt and Road Initiative, known as the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), helped boost economic growth by 1 to 2 percent and created 70,000 jobs.

"The CPEC has not indebted Pakistan, when these projects will be completed and will come into effect, they will generate huge economic spinoffs … and will create significant spin-offs for the Pakistani economy," Wang said. of a press conference in the capital. Islamabad.

Along with Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Wang said 47 percent of Pakistan's debt came from the IMF and the Asian Development Bank.

Wang said that 22 CPEC operational projects, nine of which have been completed, have triggered investments worth $ 19 billion so far. He also rejected concerns about the transparency of the CPEC saying that these concerns were "false" because all projects had been approved.

Qureshi said the CPEC remains the "top priority" of the new government, adding that the two governments would focus on projects with socio-economic development.

"They will consider projects that have a livelihood link with them, which means job creation. He talked about initiatives in the areas of health and education, vocational training, how do we want to make our populations more productive if they want to export, "Qureshi said.

The two men did not say whether China would give more loans to help Pakistan cope with the crisis in its current account. Pakistan is fighting a worsening balance of payments crisis that could prompt it to seek a new IMF bailout, although the authorities have not ruled out other options. such as a China rescue plan.

Wang will also appeal to Prime Minister Khan and Army Chief of Staff Qamar Javed Bajwa, said the foreign affairs bureau.

Wang's visit comes days after last week's trip from Pompeii to Pakistan with the US Chief of Staff, the first high-level US visit to the new government. "Between the two countries.