MAIDEN FLIGHT: Chinese and Pakistani officials attend a ceremony marking the inauguration of air cargo services between Kashi and Islamabad in Kashi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, on December 10, 2010 (CAO ZHIHENG)

The year 2011 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. Thanks to the joint efforts by the two sides, the Sino-Pakistani relationship has steadily developed and expanded despite the vicissitudes of international and regional situations. Featuring an all-weather friendship and all-round cooperation, the relationship has gone beyond a bilateral scope and become one of broader regional and international significance.

Given the growing importance of China and Pakistan, the consolidation and deepening of their relationship serves the overall interests of the two countries and will play an increasingly important role in addressing common challenges for lasting stability and common development in the region and the world as a whole.

China and Pakistan are two neighboring countries with different political systems and divergent ideologies. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1951, the two countries have enjoyed a close political relationship. Strategic trust is the defining feature of the Sino-Pakistani relationship. There have been frequent exchanges during the past six decades of high-level visits between China and Pakistan. During the visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to Pakistan in December 2010, the two sides agreed to establish an annual leaders' meeting mechanism as well as a foreign ministers' dialogue mechanism to enhance consultations and coordination. Setting an example for state-to-state relations, the Sino-Pakistani strategic partnership has influence far beyond the bilateral arena.

Geostrategic collaboration

As a major country in South Asia and a nation with important influence in the Islamic world, Pakistan is situated at the crossroads between South Asia, Central Asia, and West Asia. China's engagement with Pakistan naturally has global and regional significance. In the early days after the two countries established diplomatic relations, Pakistan served as an outlet for China, which was then under Western blockade. The air and shipping agreements between China and Pakistan and the opening of the Karakoram Highway provided air, sea and land access to China for its interactions with the outside world until China opened up in late 1970s.

In the last decade, there have been increased economic interactions between the two countries, which have brought the two economies closer and made them more integrated. These developments have now brought about a growing impact on regional cooperation and integration. The free trade agreement between China and Pakistan and other initiatives such as the Pak China Investment Co. Ltd., banking cooperation, resources development and proposed energy and transportation corridors will give much stronger impetus to regional economic and trade ties.