China and Pakistan put on an act of friendly partnership over the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) when their leaders met at the recent meet of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Islamabad, but India was not impressed.
The two countries shared pubic bonhomie over what they claimed as amazing progress with the CPEC project, sufficient enough for China to declare working with Pakistan to build an “upgraded version” of the corridor.
New Delhi completely ignored the topic, sources said, well knowing the real intention behind the statement was to propagate the message that all is well with the project and that China is doing its best for regional stability in South Asia through such exercises.
Chinese President Li Qiang, upon visiting Islamabad and meeting counterpart Shehbaz Sharif, said that “China is ready to continuously strengthen strategic coordination and deepen cooperation in various fields, and strike hand in hand with Pakistan”.
On CPEC, Li said: “China is ready to work with Pakistan to build an ‘upgraded version’ of the CPEC” and accelerate construction of infrastructure required.
The statement reflects the existing tensions between China and Pakistan over the project and its opposition to it locally in Pakistan. The Balochis are seriously opposed.
They don’t want Chinese presence in the region because they think the Chinese are building the infrastructure related to the Corridor for their benefit in terms of finding a trade route connecting eastern China with the Indian Ocean and Africa and Europe and not the benefit of Pakistanis.
In October first week, the Balock Liberation Army claimed responsibility for a suicide blast in Karachi that killed two Chinese workers.
The Chinese embassy issued a restrained message to Pakistan to “take all necessary measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens, institutions and projects in Pakistan”.
Premier Li was more forthright: “It is hoped that Pakistan will continue to provide a good business environment for Chinese companies and try its best to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions, and projects in Pakistan.”.
That nails the show of camaraderie Li and Shehbaz drummed up because bilateral tension is welling at the ground level.
Officially, Shehbaz pledged to do the utmost to hunt down perpetrators, fight terrorism, and ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects in Pakistan. He said Pakistan is willing to work with China to create an ‘upgraded version’ of the CPEC within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative, speed up transport infrastructure connectivity, and deepen cooperation in economy and trade, investment, agriculture, science and technology and mining and renewable energy.
The only significant outcome of Li’s visit to Pakistan is the fact that he met with Pakistan’s entire military leadership, i.e., Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee of the Pakistan Army Sahir Shamshad Mirza, Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, Chief of Naval Staff Naveed Ashraf and Chief of Air Staff Zaheer Ahmad Babar.
A Xinhua report said Li told them: “It is hoped that the two militaries will continue to strengthen cooperation and provide solid support for China-Pakistan friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation, noted Li. China supports Pakistan’s efforts to combat terrorism and stands ready to deepen counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan, pool counterterrorism efforts among regional countries and jointly safeguard peace and stability of the two countries and the region, Li said.”
Xinhua claims the Pakistan military responded to Li saying “the Pakistani military will contribute to the promotion of the friendly cooperation between the two countries, take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects in Pakistan, and is willing to strengthen defense and security cooperation with China within the bilateral and multilateral frameworks”.
Premier Li must have left Islamabad satisfied with the military response rather than that of the civilian government. Shehbaz will find it hardly amusing.
The “upgraded version” of CPEC means the following:
- An “Early Harvest” plan, which involves upgrading the Main Line 1 (ML-1) railway. The plan includes doubling the track from Karachi to Peshawar, adding grade separation, and implementing communications-based train control. The total cost is estimated to be US$8.2 billion.
- China and Pakistan have agreed to include five corridors: growth, innovation, green, livelihood, and opening-up and regional connectivity.
- Achieve the completion of the New Gwadar International Airport project. It is to become a regional connectivity hub and an important symbol of the further deepening of the construction of the CPEC.
- Both sides also arrived at a deal to upgrade a portion of the Karakoram Highway, which connects Pakistan with China through mountainous terrain. Heavy snowfall closes down the highway during winter.
The CPEC is a component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with the 3,000-kilometre Chinese infrastructure network aiming to connect Pakistan’s ports in Gwadar and Karachi to China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region by land. New Delhi has expressed serious concerns about the CPEC. It strategically helps China develop the region the CPEC passes through so that Pakistan and Afghanistan would undermine security on China’s northwest flank.
The project is expected to be completed by 2030. It will shorten the route for China’s energy imports from the Middle East by about 12,000 kms as well as link China’s underdeveloped far-western region to Pakistan’s Gwadar deep-sea port on the Arabian Sea via PoK through a massive and complex network of roads, railways, business zones, energy schemes and pipelines.
It will pave the way for China to access the Middle East and Africa from Gwadar Port, enabling China to access the Indian Ocean and in return China will support development projects in Pakistan to overcome the latter’s energy crises and stabilising its faltering economy.
India has serious reservations about the corridor as it covers areas falling in the disputed regions of Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. The corridor is also perceived to be an alternative economic road link for the Kashmir Valley lying on the Indian side of the border.
Aware of India’s strategic interests, China has officially said the region is its “core area”. The “upgraded version” is to show India and the world that China is bringing development to the people of Balochistan. It is now being analysed by strategists that India must effectively counter the projects China is implementing as part of its “Silk Route” – essentially a way to connect its eastern regions with the Gwadar port by passing through inhospitable terrain through Pakistan including PoK.
Some analysts say: India should strengthen and work whole heartedly in parallel projects that it has launched like that of the “Cotton Route” project along the North South Corridor, as well as Project Mausam, a regional initiative to revive its ancient maritime routes and cultural linkages with countries in the extended neighbourhood. India should stress more on developing the Chabahar port as ‘in the absence of transit through Pakistan, Iran is India’s gateway to Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Russia and beyond, and the Chabahar port is the key element in that”.
