TEHRAN -The ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) would serve as a vital link for the two countries to the Middle East and Central Asian Republics and open fresh investment avenues, new markets and vistas, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Monday.

Addressing the opening ceremony of China International Import Expo in Shanghai, Prime Minister Khan said as the Belt and Road Initiative gives shape to a global community of shared interests, this Expo will help spread dividends of freer trade, among more closely integrated economies.

Khan, who is on a four-day official visit to China on the invitation of President Xi Jinping, is in Shanghai on the second leg of his visit, where Pakistan has set up a pavilion to showcase its products.

He said the Karakoram Highway in Pakistan merges into a network of modern highways that are part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and link to the deep sea port of Gwadar - where it converges with the Belt and Road.

The prime minister said the CPEC shall cut distances and costs, bringing much needed resources to producers, and new products to consumers. “CPEC is a mechanism to forge even closer connectivity between the Middle East and China, and between Central and South Asia,” he said.

He said Pakistan was blessed with an abundant array of resources ranging from mineral riches to fertile lands, and New Pakistan will be a more conducive and a more competitive place for transacting business.