As cash-strapped Pakistan approached the IMF for a bailout agreeing to share the details of huge Chinese loans obtained for the CPEC, a wary China on Monday said the global lender should “objectively and professionally” evaluate its investments and ensure that any financial package does not affect close ties between Beijing and Islamabad.

Pakistan Finance Minister Asad Umar told the media that Islamabad is ready to share details of the debt related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with the IMF as he formally sought a bailout package from the international lender. Speaking in Islamabad on his return from Indonesia where he requested International Monetary Fund’s Managing Director Christine Lagarde for a bailout package for Pakistan, Umar said the decision to approach the global lender was taken after consultations with friendly countries.

He said an IMF team is scheduled to arrive in Pakistan on November 7 to negotiate the programme, likely to span over a three-year period. Reacting to the move by its all-weather ally Pakistan to approach the IMF for a bailout package, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Lu Kang said here that China wants an “objective and professional” evaluation of its loans to Pakistan by the IMF. The measures to be worked out by the IMF should not affect China-Pakistan relations, he said.

“As a member of the IMF, China supports the organisation having cooperation with Pakistan in objectively and professionally evaluating the situation on the ground in Pakistan,” he said while answering questions on calls for scrutiny of Chinese loans by IMF and US officials.

“Also we support the IMF (helping Pakistan) in coping with the current difficulties. Their measures shall not affect normal bilateral cooperation between China and Pakistan,” he said.