Pakistani Ambassador to China Moinul Haque on Saturday highlighted the role of the academia in China-Pakistan relations, saying that "diplomacy played a leading role in shaping the contours of international relations" but it could not perform this gigantic task alone.

He made the remarks via video link at the opening ceremony in Beijing of the "70th Anniversary Symposium of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and Pakistan," hosted by Tsinghua University's International Center for Communication Studies and organized by the Center for Pakistan Culture and Communication.

"The role of the think tanks and academic circles to make a faithful record of our bilateral ties, identify new areas of international cooperation, and explore the complex matrix of economics, politics and culture can never be underestimated," said Haque, highlighting the role of the universities working in this area across China and Confucius Institutes in Pakistan.

Moreover, he thanked China for standing by Pakistan during testing times, including the fight against COVID-19. "The vaccine campaign which is going [on] in Pakistan, the 90 percent of it is being done through vaccines provided by China," he said.

The ambassador also explained the benefits brought by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). "CPEC has contributed immensely to Pakistan's national development by upgrading its physical infrastructure, communication and transport infrastructure, addressing our acute energy needs, and developing of the Gwadar Port," he said, adding that the focus was to follow a "people-centric approach for socioeconomic development."

Common pursuits

Also speaking on the occasion, Peng Gang, vice president of Tsinghua University, said China and Pakistan share similar traditional cultural philosophy and have the same pursuit of a community of shared future for mankind.

In this regard, he highlighted a similarity of thought between Pakistan's national poet Muhammad Iqbal and Chinese philosopher Confucius. "The true unity of the peoples in the world shall blossom," he quoted Iqbal, followed by Confucius' saying that "all men are brothers."

"Pilgrim to Swat Valley"

Earlier, the guests also viewed an exhibition of photographs of northern Pakistan's Swat Valley taken by Professor Li Xiguang, director of Tsinghua University's Center for Pakistan Culture and Communication.

Various dignitaries including current and former government officials and researchers also spoke on the occasion.

Connectivity and exchange

Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, director of Pakistan-China Institute, spoke about the significance of cultural and media exchanges benefiting CPEC. He also stressed the need of having a "Pakistan-China cultural corridor," to enhance connectivity between the two peoples, think tanks and academia, and among media.

Speaking of the ties, he said China-Pakistan relationship stand out as a "model for good neighborly cooperation" and it is so unique because it is "not transactional, not tactical, and it is not against anybody."

Explaining the strong and deep-rooted relationship between the two countries, Hussain noted that this year also marked 50 years of the historic secret flight by American statesman Dr Henry Kissinger to Beijing via Pakistani capital Islamabad in July 1971. He explained how Pakistan acted as a bridge to realize normalization of China-U.S. ties, which became a turning point in global politics.

Recounting some of the key CPEC indicators, Hussain said Chinese investment worth $25 million had come in since the launch of the project, which had also given jobs to 75,000 Pakistanis.

The ironclad friendship

Furthermore, Zhang Chunxiang, former Chinese ambassador to Pakistan, talked about the strategic value of China-Pakistan ties. He narrated a series of events where both the countries helped each other. 

Over the years, among many things, while China helped Pakistan built infrastructures, including highways and military installations, Pakistan played a critical role on the political front and in the international arena, including the facilitation in establishing its ties with the U.S.

Zhang narrated an interesting story about the initiation of the Karakoram Highway, also known as the China-Pakistan Friendship Highway, which runs from northwest China's Kashgar to Havelian in Pakistan:

"In 1965, Pakistani President Ayub Khan made a state visit to China from March 2 to 9. At a banquet, Chairman Mao asked President Ayub Khan, 'How about building a highway between our two countries?' President Ayub Khan answered, 'The rugged terrain in the bordering areas of China and Pakistan would make the construction extremely difficult.' Chairman Mao replied, 'As long as we unite our peoples, anything can be done.'"

The story is not only a historical account, but an insight into the way forward, not just for the two countries, but the world as a whole.