The author discusses how in seventy years the People's Republic of China moved to the center of the world stage, became the world's largest economy (by purchasing power parity rating) in 2014 and what lessons does this hold for Pakistan given it was at the same level of development as China in 1949.

While it may be impossible for Pakistan to adopt China's lawfare model completely- given they have a one-party system, learning from their experience, we can follow a roadmap empowering the state to counter corruption successfully through creating a powerful watchdog called 'Pakistan Financial Crime Monitoring Bureau,' to catch what President Xi Jinping calls "tigers and flies" (influential higher-ups as well as lower rank public servants)

Though several international and Chinese leaders have visited Pakistan since 1950 – but for some reason not fully understood the words “Mao & Zhou Enlai” have become part of Pakistani memories and language. This piece traces the history!

POWERCHINA, a global leader in the development of clean and low-carbon energy, worked in collaboration with Pakistan to construct the Port Qasim coal-fired power plant. This was among the first batch of implementation projects of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Meanwhile, POWERCHINA has also invested time and effort in cultivating a partnership and friendship with people of Pakistan.

The ML-1 railway line project is one of the biggest projects not only of CPEC Phase-II ($6.8 billion) but of Pakistan’s recent history in terms of logistics and communications. Since the partition of British Indian Empire into India and Pakistan this is the single biggest expansion of railway system.

HBL has become the first Pakistani bank and one of three banks from South Asia & MENA Region to open branches in China, with permission to trade in local currency, RMB. This represents a 15-year-old dream that began when bank first opened a representative office in Beijing in 2005.

KKH as an idea may have deep roots in the shared history and geography of the region! But when the world’s highest paved road network, sometimes called the 8th wonder of the world, was first conceived between Pakistanis and Chinese in the early 1960’s little did they realize that one day it will become a symbol of the CPEC and BRI. KKH led to FWO, an organization that became the first embodiment of the Pakistan-China working relationship.

Pakistan's longest serving Ambassador to China traces the roots and looks at the key elements of this extraordinary bond of friendship and cooperation that has invited much envy. While affirming the multi-tiered relationship has taken a quantum leap in the form of CPEC, he explains why imperatives of regional peace and security and congruence of interests steer Pakistan-China relations.

The decision by the government to withdraw the RCET policy - which has played a vital role in the current year’s export growth, employment, and new investment - will take the sector back onto the historical snake and ladders game that is played in the country. Every time the sector is ready to take off – government changes policies and the sector lands on the proverbial snake and slides back several notches.

Like all successful and happy relationships, as Pakistan celebrates 70 years of relations with China, they still have much to share and cooperate with each other. CPEC has brought a dimension of its own, but in addition, there is much to explore and learn in the socio-economic, cultural and high-tech fields.

While Pakistan can adopt the Chinese poverty alleviation model, it needs to do so with modifications based on its governance system. The Communist Party of China was a significant factor in China’s economic prosperity due to its long-term, strategic policy-making, but can Pakistan’s diverse political structure embrace a similar challenge and rise to the occasion? Studying the Chinese model is particularly important given Prime Minister Imran Khan’s continual reference to what the Chinese have done and desire to learn from them.

In its relatively short history, Pakistan has had to face many challenges. However, its national airline has always acted as a hand in glove to advance its national interests in foreign lands. From becoming the first non-communist airline to fly into China to facilitating Henry Kissinger’s secret trip, PIA’s role in establishing the foundations for Pak-China ties has been paramount and should not be forgotten.