Pakistan and China commemorated the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic ties on 21 May, with official ceremonies held in Islamabad and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif set to travel to Beijing this weekend to meet President Xi Jinping. Speaking at a state ceremony, Sharif praised China as a "steadfast" ally that had supported Pakistan "in an unwavering fashion unmatched in the annals of history," while the State Bank of Pakistan announced the release of a commemorative Rs75 coin, available from 25 May. The two countries formally established relations on 21 May 1951 — Pakistan was the first Muslim-majority nation to recognise the People's Republic of China — and their partnership, underpinned by the $62-billion China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and deep defence ties, remains shaped in large part by a shared strategic rivalry with India.