Pakistan President Zardari assures security for Chinese nationals

The meeting between the two comes a week after five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver were killed in a suicide bombing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Bisham while travelling between Islamabad and a hydroelectric dam construction site in Dasu. The bus was attacked in the Bisham city of KP's Shangla district.

The attack prompted China to demand a thorough probe into the deadly blast and security for its citizens. In response, Islamabad announced a swift probe to hold the "perpetrators and accomplices" accountable. Chinese investigators had also arrived to join the probe, as per Dawn.

In response to the Chinese government's demand for a swift investigation into the incident and action against those responsible, the government has decided to establish a joint investigation team to examine the attack.

According to Dawn, a statement released by the presidency on Thursday confirmed that Ambassador Zaidong met with President Zardari at the Aiwan-i-Sadr.

"The meeting discussed matters of mutual interest, besides underscoring the need to increase counter-terrorism cooperation and intelligence sharing to overcome the menace of terrorism.

"The president assured the ambassador that Pakistan would take all necessary measures to ensure the security of our Chinese brothers, who are working on different projects in Pakistan," it added.

The Bisham attack was part of a series of assaults in a span of a few days specifically targeting Chinese interests, including previous incidents at the Gwadar Port Authority Complex and the Turbat naval base, both of which are integral to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. These consecutive attacks underlined the escalating security challenges facing Chinese projects and personnel in Pakistan.

In a prior attack in July 2021, 13 individuals, including 9 Chinese nationals, were killed. The incident occurred when a coach transporting them to an under-construction tunnel site of the 4,300-megawatt Dasu hydropower project plunged into a ravine in the Upper Kohistan area following an explosion.

Additionally, the president held a meeting with Russian Ambassador Albert P Khorev, and conveyed his condolences for the lives lost in a terrorist attack in Moscow last month.

Khorev told the president that Russia desired to play its part in the economic development and prosperity of Pakistan and that both countries were cooperating on mutual issues such as anti-terrorism and drug trafficking.

The ambassador said that Russia desired to double the existing volume of bilateral trade with Pakistan and President Zardari also expressed the hope of increasing bilateral cooperation, particularly in energy and barter trade. (ANI)