Support vowed for Pakistan terror fight

China will continue to support Pakistan in enhancing counterterrorism capabilities and work with it to resolutely thwart any attempt to damage relations between the two countries, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

He made the remarks in a video meeting with Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Wednesday, when they reached a consensus on the issue of Chinese citizens' security in Pakistan.

The talks follow a terrorist attack that killed three Chinese teachers, with another person injured, when the van they were traveling in was targeted in Karachi on April 26.The victims worked at the Confucius Institute at the University of Karachi. It was the fourth terrorist attack on Chinese citizens on Pakistani soil since April last year.

Wang said that China and Pakistan have unique bonds and are time-tested, all-weather strategic cooperative partners. The friendship between the two sides will be passed on from generation to generation and will not be shaken or changed by any single incident.

He called on the two countries to respond with immediate, resolute and effective measures, as the aim of the terrorist forces is to undermine the credibility of the Pakistani government and destroy the traditional friendship between China and Pakistan.

The urgent need is to accelerate the investigation into the case, hunt down the perpetrators and hand them severe punishment, he added.

Wang hoped that Pakistan can earnestly safeguard security in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, protect Chinese personnel, institutions and projects in Pakistan, and resolutely prevent similar incidents from happening again.

Attack condemned

Bilawal said Pakistan has issued the strongest condemnation of the terrorist attack in Karachi, saying the attacks on Chinese brothers and sisters amount to attacks against the Pakistani people.

He said Pakistan is firmly opposed to all terrorist acts, and the minister vowed the country would carry out a thorough investigation and bring all the perpetrators to justice.

Noting that the terrorists have sought to undermine the friendship between Pakistan and China, Bilawal said Pakistan would never allow them to achieve their goals.

Moin ul Haque, Pakistan's ambassador to China, said recently that terrorist incidents have led to more than 80,000 casualties in Pakistan and economic losses of over $150 billion since 2001.

The video meeting with Wang was Bilawal's first official bilateral activity since he took up his post on April 27. It was also the first interaction between the two foreign ministers since the formation of Pakistan's new government.

As the largest trade partner and a major source of foreign direct investment in Pakistan, China can play a pivotal role in Pakistan's economic recovery and long-term development, with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor leading the cooperation efforts between the two countries.