A delegation of nine media and think tank representatives from Pakistan recently visited China, traveling from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Shaanxi Province to Beijing.
Impressed by China’s social and economic advancements, they expressed a strong desire to further deepen China-Pakistan cooperation in the future.
During their five-day visit to Xinjiang, the first stop of their China tour from Aug. 19 to 29, the delegation visited the regional capital Urumqi and the Kazak Autonomous Prefecture of Ili. Through direct exchanges with local residents, the members of the delegation experienced a Xinjiang that starkly contrasts with the negative portrayals by some Western media.
“It is my second time here in Urumqi. It has been 10 years since the last visit, and there are a lot of differences here,” said Qamar Bashir, former press secretary to the Pakistani president. “The people look much happier and more confident.”
During their China tour, the delegation also witnessed the achievements of exchanges and cooperation between China and Pakistan under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).