For more than a decade, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has dominated conversations about Pakistan-China relations. It has been measured in kilometres of highways, megawatts of electricity generated, ports developed and infrastructure financed. Those achievements have undoubtedly transformed Pakistan’s economic landscape and cemented CPEC as the flagship project of China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

But perhaps the most important question today is no longer what CPEC has accomplished—it is what comes next.

As Pakistan and China celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations, the bilateral partnership is entering a new era. The conversation is shifting beyond infrastructure towards industrial development, technology, investment, innovation, defence cooperation and scientific collaboration. That was the central theme of my recent conversation with H.E. Khalil Hashmi, Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, on Observer Dialogue, where we discussed how one of Pakistan’s most important strategic relationships is adapting to new economic realities and global challenges.

The Foundation Was Never the Finish Line One of the Ambassador’s most compelling observations came in the form of a remarkably simple analogy. “CPEC is like the hardware, and CPEC 2.0 is like the software.”

In just a few words, Ambassador Hashmi captured the transformation now taking place. The first phase of CPEC focused on building the physical backbone of Pakistan’s economy. Roads, power projects, ports and transport networks created the conditions necessary for economic growth. But infrastructure was never meant to be the........

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