Beijing: Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao today (May 4, 2004) urged Pakistan to ensure safety of all Chinese nationals in the country in the aftermath of yesterday's (May 3, 2004) car bomb blast, which killed three of its nationals and injured nine others in Gwadar.

Hu, also general secretary of the ruling Communist Party, said that he "attached importance to the safety of Chinese engineers in Pakistan" and urged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the country's diplomatic missions in Pakistan to ensure the safety of its citizens in Pakistan and provide relief to the victims of the bomb attack.

Three Chinese nationals were killed and 11 others, including two Pakistanis, were wounded yesterday when a car exploded near their bus in Gwadar, about 500 km West of Karachi.

Hu extended condolences to the families of the killed via the Chinese embassy and consulates in Pakistan, Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier, Chinese premier Wen, currently on an official visit to Germany, also directed the country's diplomats to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals in Pakistan.

The victims, all engineers, were among 300 Chinese nationals working on the Gwadar port. All the Chinese injured in the attack are out of danger, the report said.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has written a letter to his Chinese counterpart strongly condemning the terrorist act and stressed that Pakistan will never allow a few terrorists to undermine Pakistan-China friendship and cooperation.