Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz hailed the enduring friendship between Pakistan and China in a speech to faculty and students at the Main Building Dec. 16.

Tsinghua President Gu Binglin met with Mr. Aziz before the speech, titled “ Pakistan 's View on Peace and Development in the Region.”

“We in Pakistan take great pride in the close friendship and cooperation that our two countries have maintained for over half a century,” said Mr. Aziz. “Hundreds of our students are coming to China's great educational institutions to seek modern knowledge and technology.”

The prime minister took a positive view of the ongoing educational exchange and cooperation between the two countries, saying Pakistan plans to increase the numbers of students coming to China, believing that "Tsinghua University would be their favored and coveted destination.”

Mr. Aziz focused his speech on some major post-war global trends, the increasingly important role China is playing in Asia and on the world stage, and Pakistan 's policies and security perspective in the region.

After the speech, he answered several questions from students on topics including economic development, availability of water resources, and career development.

Shaukat Aziz spent over thirty years in banking and finance in several countries, including the Philippines, Jordan, Greece, the U.S., the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Singapore and Saudi Arabia. He served as vice president of Citibank for seven years before entering government service. He became the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan in August of 2004.

Reported by Li Han