BEIJING: President Xi Jinping extended welcome to excellent youth from all countries in the world to study in China in his Sunday reply to a letter from all Pakistani students studying in the University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB).
In his letter, Xi encouraged the students to communicate more with their Chinese peers and join hands with youth from all countries to contribute to promoting people-to-people connectivity and building a community with a shared future for humanity.
The response comes after Pakistani students had earlier thanked him for the support and help they received from the university. The students had expressed their wish to contribute to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) after completing their studies.
“China welcomes outstanding young people from around the world to study in China, and encourages them to promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and their home countries,” said Xi according to state-owned broadcaster CGTN.
Saying that the Chinese government was concerned about the safety and wellbeing of its overseas students, Xi offered to help meet “students’ needs in their daily lives, epidemic prevention and medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic”.
The Chinese government treats foreigners and locals equally, and the focus is on saving lives, he wrote.
There are currently 52 Pakistani students studying at the University of Science and Technology with 49 of them pursuing Ph.D. or post-graduate degrees.
