Pakistan-China China shuts down border with Pakistan after temporary opening, trade hit
Islamabad: China has closed the border and stopped sending cargo vehicles to Pakistan without any reason, days after Beijing had conditionally opened the Khunjerab pass for one side trade, media reports said.
In a letter sent to secretary Commerce, Gilgit Baltistan (GB) chief minister and other ministries and authorities concerned recently, the Pakistan Gemstone and Mineral Association (PGMA) claimed that Chinese authorities only allowed temporary opening of the border to send Chinese goods to Pakistan, reports Pakistan Today.
As per the association, Pakistani traders have been suffering from a year and a half due whereas a notification issued jointly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan and the Chinese authorities had assured that the border will remain open for unilateral trade without any closure till December 31, the newspaper reported.
Pakistan Today said it learnt that traders have booked goods worth billions of rupees via online booking, were following Covid-19 SOPs and also bearing high transportation cost worth Rs3.5 million due to unloading of trucks at Khunjerab. Previously, the transportation cost was Rs0.5 million.
“This is not for the first time that the conduct of Chinese with our traders has been biased and inhumane. Our trucks which are fully loaded are stuck at Tashkurgan and we have to pay 45,001 Chinese Yuan daily, equivalent to Rs1,140,000, as parking cost,” the trade body claimed.
Interestingly, Pakistan and China are all-weather allies.
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