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Pakistan will stand by China: Gilani

* Prime minister visits Chinese embassy to offer condolences
* Two plane loads of relief goods for earthquake victims sent to China

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Thursday expressed grief over the loss of life in China following the devastating earthquake which struck the provinc of Sichuan on Monday.

"The loss of human lives in China is considered a loss for Pakistan. I assure them that in this hour of need, we are with them," the prime minister said during his visit to the Chinese embassy to offer condolences to the ambassador.

In his comments in the visitors' book at the embassy, the prime minister wrote ‘In these moments of grief, the whole Pakistani nation extends the deepest condolences to the families of the deceased.’

The prime minister said he had also conveyed his condolences to Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and pledged Pakistan’s solidarity to the people of China.

The Chinese ambassador thanked the government of Pakistan for its assistance, saying "A friend in need is a friend indeed, and we appreciate that Pakistan stands by us in this hour."

Meanwhile, two planes loaded with relief goods for the earthquake victims will be arriving in Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan, where the Consulate General of Pakistan will receive the goods and hand them over to Chinese officials.

The death toll from the quake has reached nearly 20,000 with nearly all of the dead in Sichuan, according to the temporary disaster relief headquarters.

China's central government, meanwhile has ordered the mobilisation 50 more military helicopters to airlift the critically injured from the mountain-logged rural areas.

The Chinese premier while carrying out another air inspection of the quake-hit districts on Wednesday, ordered further reinforcements for the worst hit areas, Wenchuan and Beichuan, as more than 100,000 PLA troops and police are searching and rescuing victims day and night, said the official media. app

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