China and Pakistan have rejected a media report that Prime Minister Imran Khan's newly elected government wants to renegotiate the agreements reached under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with Beijing saying Islamabad's commitment to President Xi Jinping's pet project is "unwavering".
An article titled 'Pakistan rethinks its role in Xi's Belt and Road plan' by the UK-based Financial Times on Sunday quoted Prime Minister's Adviser on Commerce, Textile, Industry and Production, and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood as saying that Pakistan "should put everything on hold for a year so we can get our act together."
In the article, which created furore as it came hours after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi concluded his visit to Islamabad, Dawood was also reported to have said that the "Chinese companies received tax breaks, many breaks and have an undue advantage in Pakistan; this is one of the things we're looking at because it's not fair that Pakistan companies should be disadvantaged."
In Islamabad, the Pakistan Foreign Office said Monday that during meetings with Wang, Pakistani leadership conveyed that the CPEC was a national priority for the government and "Pakistan remains committed to the successful implementation of CPEC."
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