In an effort to speed up trade between the two countries, Pakistani officials said that travel and trade.
Between the two countries will resume through a crucial border crossing point in Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan area that connects with Xinjiang.
The Khunjerab Pass, the highest paved international crossing in the world at 5,000 metres above sea level.
Serves as a vital economic route between China and Pakistan as well as a point of entry for Chinese imports and exports to South Asia and Europe.
According to a contract, trade between the two nations can take place through the Khunjerab Pass from April to November.
Through the Karakoram Highway, which travels through Khunjerab, the first trade activity between China and Pakistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) began in November 2016.
According to Rana Muhammad Saleem Afzal, the Gilgit-Baltistan Home Secretary. Authorities on both sides of the border last week decided to reopen the crucial border point for all types of travel on April 3. After it was shut down in 2019 to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Late on Sunday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on Twitter, “Reopening of Khunjrab Pass is important to boosting trade between Pakistan and China.”
“The administration is committed to making the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The focal point of our economic diplomacy for the region in order to fully realise CPEC’s potential.
The foundation of prosperity is trade & connectivity. Due in part to their border issues with India, China and Pakistan are close allies that cooperate in the military, commercial, and defence sectors.
Beijing has also made significant financial contributions to the $65 billion CPEC project, which aims to build a huge network of pipelines, railroads, and roadways to link China with Pakistani ports.
The extended closure of Khunjerab Pass resulted in massive financial losses for the neighborhood’s businesses and led to layoffs.
For emergency freight transfer from China to Pakistan over the past three years, the main border crossing point has occasionally been opened.
With its currency at a historic low, just sufficient foreign exchange reserves to pay one month’s worth of import. And inflation at a 50-year high, Pakistan, a nation of 220 million, has been engulfed in an economic crisis.
The cash-strapped South Asian country should get some relief with the start of trade with China.
