KARACHI, Pakistan/ISTANBUL

China's President Xi Jinping held talks with visiting Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari in Beijing on Wednesday.

Zardari is currently on a five-day visit to China, running from Feb. 4 to 8.

During the meeting, the two leaders discussed matters of mutual interest, including the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), regional connectivity, and security cooperation.

Xi said China and Pakistan “are ironclad friends and all-weather strategic cooperative partners,” according to the Foreign Ministry statement from Beijing.

Beijing "is ready to work hand in hand with Pakistan on each other’s path to modernization and speed up efforts to build an even closer China-Pakistan community," he added.

Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s “steadfast commitment to its All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership” with China, referring to political, economic, military, and cultural ties between the two countries as well as mutual support in global affairs.

Islamabad, Beijing to step up intel cooperation

Separately, the two sides agreed to boost cooperation in intelligence sharing.

Pakistani Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Chinese counterpart Qi Yanjun agreed to strengthen intelligence sharing and improve border security during a meeting in Beijing, according to an official statement issued by Naqvi's office in Islamabad.

Pakistan and China also reached an agreement for Islamabad to acquire police equipment and technology from Beijing.

Earlier, Zardari met with Zhao Leji, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.

The two sides discussed the "high-quality" development of the second phase of the CPEC, with a particular emphasis on promoting cooperation in science and technology, renewable energy, infrastructure, and agriculture sectors, said a statement from Zardari's office.

They described CPEC as a "shining example" of people-centric development, with its focus on win-win cooperation, shared benefits, and common prosperity.

The two sides discussed the opportunities to strengthen institutional linkages, including through parliamentary exchanges and participation in the CPEC Political Parties Joint Consultative Mechanism, to further solidify the bilateral cooperation.
Zardari also visited the Monument to People's Heroes in Beijing to pay tribute to the national heroes.