China: China now wants to build its military bases in Pakistan. It is being said that China is considering taking this step to protect its investment in Pakistan. Indeed, China has invested heavily in Pakistan and Afghanistan under its ambitious Belt and Road Initiative. Now China is planning to build security posts in both countries and deploy army to protect its investment. This information has emerged from top diplomatic sources.
China wants to increase its influence in Central Asia through Pakistan-Afghanistan. For this reason, it has made strategic investments in both countries. So far, China’s investment in Pakistan has crossed 60 billion dollars. In such a situation, Pakistan is not only dependent on China for economic but also for military and diplomatic support.
China is putting pressure on Pakistan
China has now started pressuring Pakistan to allow it to build outposts in Pakistan, where it can deploy its troops. Afghanistan is ruled by the Taliban. The Taliban has so far not lived up to the expectations of China and Pakistan in many respects. According to the report, top diplomatic and security sources in Pakistan said that the Chinese Army (PLA) is trying to build military outposts in Afghanistan and Pakistan on a war footing. China claims that this will allow for a better expansion of its Belt and Road Initiative.
The Chinese ambassador met the PM and the foreign minister
According to diplomatic sources, Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong has also met Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto and Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa in this regard. However, Rong was not in Pakistan until March 2022. He has just arrived in Pakistan. However, the meeting in which he called for outposts for the Chinese military was Ambassador Rong’s first formal meeting with the new government and state representatives. According to sources, the Chinese ambassador is constantly raising the issue of their investment in Pakistan and the security of Chinese citizens. People fear that China is already caught in Pakistan’s debt trap.
In such a situation, China’s strategy should not turn the country into a colony. Taliban blow to Pakistan Both Pakistan and China have their own concerns in Afghanistan. After the Taliban came to power, Pakistan and China hoped to get support from here. However, this could not be done completely. One of the most prominent demands of the Pakistanis was that they wanted India out of Afghanistan. But the Taliban does not want Pakistan to interfere so much in its internal affairs. The Taliban is demanding an independent foreign policy, including ties with India. Taliban Defense Minister Mullah Yaqub has suggested military training in India.
However, this is not the only issue where Pakistan seeks the support of the Taliban. Pakistan thought that the Taliban and especially the Haqqani Tahrir-e-Taliban would eliminate it and hand over its wanted terrorists to the Pakistani army. However, Haqqani quickly clarified that he would not take such a step. The reason is that Taliban and TTP terrorists have the same background. In such a situation, when Pakistan was left with no solution, it negotiated a ceasefire with the TTP.
The Taliban have not lived up to China’s expectations
China is also worried about some things in Afghanistan. The Taliban and the Haqqanis have shown no interest in handing over the Uighur insurgents to Chinese authorities. Not only this, China believes that the Taliban is not serious about the development of the BRI network in Afghanistan.