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Pak-China Sost border reopened for trade

Source : The Nation   Date : April 02, 2013   

Pak-China Sost border reopened for trade

GILGIT  - Pakistan and China have resumed trade and traffic on the Karakoram Highway, through the Khunjerab Pass. The two countries had earlier this year agreed to open the border on 1st April, instead of 1st May, as was the past practice.


A bus carrying passengers from China reached the Pakistan Customs House located in the border town of Sost on Monday. The importance of the trade through the Karakoram Highway has increased significantly due to the powerful presence of Chinese business companies in Gwadar. It is pertinent to note that the outgoing Pakistan government had handed over the management of Gwadar Port to a Chinese company recently.


The trade through Karakoram Highway has badly been disrupted due to the blockade and destruction caused by the landslide and the dammed Hunza River.


Currently, tunnels are being constructed near Attabad and Ayeenabad to realign the KKH. The realignment work is not likely to be completed before mid of 2014, according to China Roads and Bridges Corporation (CRBC) officials, who are working on expansion and realignment of the KKH.