BEIJING, May 8: Beijing says it is open to renaming the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to allay Indian concerns that the project recognises Pakistan’s claims on territory which India claims as its own, reported India media.
“Even we can think about renaming the CPEC,” Chinese Ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui said in an address to the United Services Institution in Delhi.
“China and India have had successful experience of de-linking sovereignty disputes with bilateral relations before. In history, we have had close cooperation along the ancient Silk Road,” Sputnik news quoted Zhaohui as saying.
“Why shouldn’t… support this kind of cooperation today. In a word, China is sincere in its intention to cooperate with India on the One Belt One Road (OBOR), as it is good for both of us.”
President Xi Jinping has championed what China formally calls the “One Belt, One Road” or OBOR, initiative to build a new Silk Road linking Asia, Africa and Europe, a landmark program to invest billions of dollars in infrastructure projects including railways, ports and power grids.
A major part of the initiative is the $57-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) of infrastructure and energy projects Beijing announced in 2014.
Last year, Pakistan welcomed the first large shipment of Chinese goods at Gwadar, where the China Overseas Ports Holding Company Ltd took over operations in 2013. It plans to eventually handle 300 million to 400 million tons of cargo a year.-Agencies
