China signs $35bn in deals with Pakistan

Chinese premier Wen Jiabao promised $36 billion in economic deals to Pakistan on Sunday during an official visit to the country. The move represents an important signal to both India, to whom Beijing offered a much smaller $16 billion in deals, and the U.S., who considers Pakistan a key ally in the fight against terrorism and has until been the country’s foremost supplier of financial and military aid. The offer unveiled by Wen includes infrastructure projects that would economically integrate Pakistan with western China, providing Beijing with coveted land access to the Arabian Sea.

Financial Times