After making a significant investment in the Pakistan-Afghanistan region which is prone to conflict as part of a very ambitious belt and road initiative, China plans to protect its interests in both countries by placing its own troops in special posts, according to leading diplomatic sources .
China has wanted to expand its influence to Central Asia through the Pakistan-Afghanistan route and has made strategic investment in both countries.
A Chinese ship with the ability to track satellites and intercontinental missiles docked at the Port of Hambantota Sri Lanka Tuesday morning amid the concerns of the surveillance expressed by India. Pakistan, where according to some estimates of Chinese investment has increased above USD 60 billion, most of them depend on China not only for finance but also military and diplomatic support. Given the very large imbalance of power, China has begun to put pressure on Pakistan to enable the development of the post where he will place armed personnel. Afghanistan, where the Taliban is in power now, does not meet the expectations of both China and Pakistan in many ways.
Diplomatic sources and top security in Islam that asked anonymity for this report, believed that the Chinese people’s liberation army worked on a war scale to build military posts in Afghanistan and Pakistan for what he claimed would be a smoother operation and expansion of belt initiative and the road (BRI). According to diplomatic sources, Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong has held a meeting with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto and Head of Army Qamar Javed Bajwa in this case. The Ambassador Rong has not been in Pakistan since the end of March 2022 this year, has just arrived in that country.
However, the meeting in which he demanded the creation of posts for Chinese troops may be a formal meeting of the Ambassador Rong with the government and new state representatives. The Chinese Ambassador continues to insist on the security of Chinese projects and the safety of its citizens, the source informed. China has demanded security posts in Gwadar and also to use Gwadar International Airport for its fighter jets. Facilities that can be used for military purposes will immediately operate as revealed from the fence, the top source is revealed.
However, this problem has its own sensitive dimensions because the people of Pakistan may be uncomfortable with the presence of heavy Chinese military in the country. There is a concern that this country is already in a situation like a debt trap and that Chinese tactics can make it no better than a colony. In Afghanistan, both China and Pakistan have their own concerns. After the takeover of the Taliban, both Pakistan and China expect unquestionable cooperation from land that is confined to land. However, this has not been fully realized.
One of the main demands of the Pakistani people is that they want to keep Indians away from Afghanistan. But the Taliban based in Kandahar does not really like Pakistan who will allow it to call shots. The Taliban has been interested in independent foreign policies including relations with India. Even Mullah Yaqub, the Taliban Defense Minister, has suggested military training in India.
However, this is not the only region where Pakistan expects the new Afghan government to comply with his desires. The Taliban and in particular groups affiliated with haqqanis are expected to facilitate the destruction of Pakistan Ikrik-e-Taliban and surrender the desired militants to the Pakistani army. Haqqanis immediately explained that they would not obey. The reason is that Kandaharis and several leaders TTP shared the same ancestral background. There was no choice, the Pakistani army had to be involved in a complex ceasefire discussion with TTP.
The new Afghan government should also recognize the durand line as an international border. Pakistan has set up a wire fence at a large enough cost in recent years, but in a few weeks the Taliban and TTP cut the wire and submitted a claim to the Fata Pakistan region.
According to a source, Pakistani Army Chief of Staff, General Bajwa, has taken care of anxiety about the takeover of the Taliban, but he was opposed by his intelligence head Faiz Hamid and by a strong Corps Commander. China has also seen developments in Afghanistan with several concerns. The Chinese have their own concerns. The Taliban and Haqqanis showed no interest in handing over Uyghur rebels to Chinese authorities.
China also considers they are not serious about the development of its BRI network in Afghanistan. China wants access to Central Asia and Europe through CPEC and Afghanistan, said the diplomatic source. There is a concern in Beijing that Uyghur extremists may have begun to collaborate with Balochi and TTP groups to damage the Chinese-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
There are a number of attacks in Pakistan in which Chinese citizens were targeted, including the bomb explosion in Quetta in April 2021 which was passed by the Chinese Ambassador. A year later, a bombing of Balochi killed three Chinese citizens near the Confucian Karachi Institute. It is precisely these incidents that cause Chinese pressure updates to spread their own security to Pakistan – requests that have been repeatedly rejected by Pakistan.
According to sources, China wants to expand its strategic role in Pakistan by deploying its own security personnel to protect the project and its citizens there. The source also said that China wanted to invest in Afghanistan and wanted to expand its BRI project, so Beijing needed to secure Pakistan and Afghanistan with its military posts. China has reminded Pakistan about its history to give posts to America and other countries during the Cold War. At present, China has invested a lot in Pakistan and requests for regulations for post and security are serious about the passage of time.
Pakistan must pay 300 billion Pakistani rupees to Chinese companies, and these companies have threatened Pakistan to close power plants if unpaid fees will not be cleaned, according to known sources. Bostan Industry Zone, Gwadar Port, Special Zone-I and Zone-II; Several patrol units in the western level of CPEC covering the Association, Khuzdar, Hoshab and Turbat areas; Mohmand Marble City (SEZ) near the body of Mohmand and Sost Dry-Port & Moqpondass Special Economic Zone in Gilgit-Baltistan are the main Chinese projects running in Pakistan.
On the one hand, Pakistan was trapped in the diplomacy of the Chinese debt trap, while on the other hand, the Chinese government constantly reminded them that they did not believe in Pakistani security equipment. Pakistan did not want to disturb China from whom repeatedly took financial assistance. However, receiving demand will not only reduce its global image, but can also cause domestic complications, concluding sources that ask for anonymity for this report because of their closeness with decision makers in the country. The latest Chinese pressure mobilization has placed Pakistan in a strict place like whether it accesses the demands or not, it will face consequences.
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