Musharraf to visit China next month

* To attend Boao Forum
* Also to visit South Korea
* China calls visit significant

ISLAMABAD: President General Pervez Musharraf will visit China from November 3 to 5 for his first meeting with counterpart Hu Jintao in a trip aimed at further strengthening ties with Pakistan’s long-time ally, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday.

Musharraf’s visit is to begin on the southern island of Hainan for the Boao Forum of regional political and business leaders, where he will meet Premier Wen Jiabao on the sidelines, the ministry said.

He will then travel to Beijing, the Chinese capital, for talks with Hu, who became president earlier this year.

The leaders will discuss bilateral, regional and international issues of common interest, the ministry said. Musharraf will then travel to South Korea for two days. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said Musharraf’s visit to Beijing was highly significant to develop bilateral ties.

China is Pakistan’s biggest supplier of defence equipment. The two countries concluded three days of unprecedented joint naval exercises off the coast of Shanghai on Thursday, the first that China has conducted with another country. —Agencies

Book shows Musharraf as man of peace

BEIJING: The Chinese people view President General Pervez Musharraf as a man of peace, said Cheng Lianchang, the China People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) leader in Beijing on Thursday. At the launch of the book “Musharraf, Envoy of Destiny” written by Yi Rucheng in Chinese, he said Gen Musharraf’s attempt to promote the Sino-Pak friendship was commendable. Mr Lianchang said he hoped that the book would help strengthen long-standing ties between the two countries. “165-page book provides an introduction of Gen Musharraf’s personal qualities and his vision for peace and development to the Chinese people,” said Pakistani Ambassador to China Riaz Mohammad Khan. The book gives a description of Gen Musharraf’s childhood, his military career and his personal life. Mr Rucheng said Gen Musharraf’s achievements on the domestic and international fronts in the recent years inspired him to write the book. —APP

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