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Pakistan
ChinaDiplomacy

Power shift in Pakistan won’t affect China ties, ‘hard-core friend’ Beijing says

  • Shehbaz Sharif to be new Pakistani prime minister after Imran Khan ousted by no-confidence vote
  • Beijing remains ‘unwaveringly’ committed to friendly ties with close neighbour, foreign ministry says

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As prime minister, Imran Khan nurtured closer ties with China and Russia while being a vocal critic of US policy in the region. Photo: AFP
Laura Zhou
Relations with Pakistan are unlikely to be affected, China said, after Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan was removed from office by a historic no-confidence motion amid a major political crisis in the South Asian nation.

Beijing has been closely watching the political situation in Pakistan, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday. “As Pakistan’s close neighbour and hard-core friend, we sincerely hope that all factions in Pakistan will maintain unity and work together to safeguard the overall situation of the country’s stability and development,” ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.

“No matter how the political situation in Pakistan changes, China will unwaveringly adhere to its friendly policy towards Pakistan.”

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Zhao’s comments came as the National Assembly, Pakistan’s parliament, gathered on Monday afternoon to vote in the next prime minister, after a no-confidence vote late on Saturday ended Khan’s four-year run in office, making him the first Pakistani prime minister to be ousted in this way.

That role will go to Shehbaz Sharif, leader of the opposition alliance and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party, and also the younger brother of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif, after his sole rival dropped out of the race earlier in the day.
A Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supporter holds a party flag bearing images of Shehbaz Sharif (left) and Nawaz Sharif, outside the parliament building in Islamabad on Monday. Photo: AFP
A Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supporter holds a party flag bearing images of Shehbaz Sharif (left) and Nawaz Sharif, outside the parliament building in Islamabad on Monday. Photo: AFP
The China-Pakistan relationship has been one of the highest priorities for Beijing and a cornerstone of Islamabad’s foreign policy. Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping have often hailed the two countries as “iron brothers”, while in Pakistan, relations with China are often described as “higher than the mountains, deeper than the sea and sweeter than honey”.
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