Chinese Premier Li Keqiang held talks with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday, with both sides pledging to enhance cooperation between the two countries.

Khan arrived in China to attend the closing ceremony of the International Horticultural Exhibition 2019 Beijing and to pay a working visit to China.

Li first expressed his sincere condolences to Pakistan’s government and people on their losses from the 5.8-magnitude earthquake that hit the South Asian country recently.

Khan’s visit to China is his third visit since he took office as Prime Minister in August last year, acquires significance as it comes days ahead of President Xi’s planned high-profile visit to India to take part in the 2nd informal summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Mamallapuram near Chennai next week.

Li said China supports Pakistan in safeguarding its independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and legitimate rights and interests, in promoting its national prosperity, and in playing a greater role in international and regional affairs.

“China is ready to work with Pakistan to continue to deepen strategic mutual trust, expand pragmatic cooperation, enhance people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and push bilateral relations and cooperation to a new height,” he said.

Li said China-Pakistan cooperation is not only in line with both countries’ interests but also beneficial to regional peace and stability. He said that China is glad to see that Pakistan has managed to get through its economic hard times and that China is willing to continue to provide assistance to Pakistan within its capacity.

For his part, Khan extended congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. He said that thanks to China’s assistance and support, Pakistan’s economy has stabilized and gradually recovered.

He said Pakistan stands ready to work with China to accelerate the joint construction of the Belt and Road and attaches great importance to the construction of the CPEC and Gwadar port.

Pakistan is willing to work with China to expand trade and investment, and promote cooperation in energy, hydroelectricity, nuclear electricity, railway and agriculture, he added.

Khan is accompanied by a high-level delegation including Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Minister for Planning, Development and Reform Khusro Bakhtiar, Board of Investment (BoI) Chairman Zubair Gilani and other senior officials.

Khan was also expected to address the China Pakistan Business Forum in Beijing and to meet Chinese entrepreneurs as well as the heads of different companies.

In April, he visited Beijing to attend the second Belt and Road Forum and for talks with the Chinese leadership on the expanded CPEC.

His first official visit was in November 2018.

(With IANS inputs)