ISLAMABAD, Jan. 16 (INP) - Per capita income in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has grown from $70 in 1949 to $7000 in 2020, Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Yao Jing said, reports Gwadar Pro App.

Speaking at a New Year reception for the media and the think tank organized by the Chinese embassy here, Ambassador Yao said the Western media had created a bad impression about Xinjiang.

"Xinjiang is a Muslim majority region and there is nothing true in the reports of suppressing Muslims in the region. Per capita income of Xinjiang has increased manifold from only $70 in 1949 to $7000 now, while the number of mosques has also increased from only around 2900 to 25000," he said.

The Ambassador said that 2020 was the year of renewed commitment from both Pakistan and China to negate common enemy's propaganda by further strengthening mutual cooperation in areas beyond China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) including defense and international affairs.

"In 2020, we are still facing challenges, these challenges are neither from China nor from Pakistan, but are from our common enemies who do not want to see good relationship between the two countries," Yao said.

He said the Western media was up against relationship between Pakistan and China especially against CPEC which was quite unjustified.

"Our enemy does not want to enhance our capabilities on economic, defense and social fronts, it does not want to see our capability of maintaining peace and stability," he added.

The envoy informed that a number of Chinese agriculture companies were coming to Pakistan to purchase more value added agriculture products.

He said last year China had completed 70 years of its creation, during that time it witnessed many ups and downs with the world, however, Pakistan remained the strongest, firmest and the best friend of China.

"We also celebrated 70 years of high quality friendship with Pakistan," he said, adding after launch of CPEC, the bilateral relationship entered a new era of cooperation.

He said the issue of Kashmir must be resolved in accordance with the United Nations Security Council's resolutions.

Ambassador Yao said China and Pakistan should also express determination to the common cause of regional peace and stability especially that of Afghanistan and the Middle East.

On CPEC, he said the mega project had entered its second stage where social, industrial and agriculture sectors would be the areas of special focus.

Further, he said that as per vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan to alleviate poverty, social sector was also area of priority under CPEC, and in the first stage, several villages of back ward areas of the country were being model of poverty alleviation.

He further said that a new area has come where science and technology could produce more high value added products in the country.

The envoy pointed out that there was no slowing down of work under CPEC. He said impression of slowing down of CPEC was only because currently no mega project was under execution, however he said that there were a number of small projects that were being executed in Gwadar and other areas of Balochistan and the rest of the country.

He said Main Line Railway project was a huge project and had big financial implication, therefore both countries had constituted a committee to find out a suitable financial module to fund the project.

INP/javed