Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Saturday rejected a Pentagon report that China is considering setting up military bases in Pakistan. On Thursday, the United States Defense Department had stated that Beijing was seeking to establish military bases around the world to protect its investments in its ambitious One Belt One Road global infrastructure program. The Pentagon report said that China will seek to establish additional military bases in countries with which it has a longstanding friendly relationship and similar strategic interests, such as Pakistan, and in which there is a precedent for hosting foreign militaries. “The baseless claims are being spread by the enemies of Pakistan, including India,” Foreign Minister Qureshi said while speaking to reporters in Multan. The foreign minister went on to say that even the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leadership was not taken on board on nomination of Rana Tanveer for the now vacant post.

Source: Pakistan Today May 04, 2019 15:11 UTC