ISLAMABAD -- Pakistan has approved an unprecedented $11.6 million in compensation for the families of Chinese engineers who were killed and wounded in a terrorist attack last year in a move to smooth bilateral relations as Prime Minister Imran Khan prepares to visit Beijing in February.
The move comes at a time when ties between the two countries have begun to cool. A strategically important infrastructure project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), has stalled. The $50 billion flagship component of President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative has hit a number of snags, including security problems in Pakistan.