Author: Zahir Baloch
The commercially driven alliance between Pakistan and China was initiated in 1949. India, being their mutual enemy in South Asia, because after partition, the Kashmir issue aggravated the Pak-India bitter relation. And since their inception, they have fought three wars. In 1949, after the division of China into two parts, a socialist state under the leadership of Mao Zedong was established, and Pakistan was the first country to recognize the People’s Republic of China in the United Nations.
It has always been Pakistan and China’s mutual interest to pin down India and prevent its rise in the region as China too has border issues with India which resulted in their war in 1965. In 1951, to strengthen their alliance, Pakistan and China signed a trade agreement. Under the name of Bandung Conference in 1955, a meeting was held between Asian and African countries whose objectives are as follows:
• No interference in the internal issues of the countries
• Respecting regional security
• Respecting each other’s autonomy
• To ensure each other’s survival including other objectives
Pakistan and China signed a few more agreements in 1963 to strengthen commercial and political relations, including trade agreements, air transport and a few other ones. With the rise of civil war in 1971, Bangladesh claimed its national identity and started its struggle for independence.
Geographically, India could easily offer its support to Bangladesh while China, in enmity with India, forwarded a helping hand to Pakistan. Consequently, this became clear that Pakistan and China are always eager to help and reaffirm their commitment to each other. During these years, Pakistan arranged secret meetings between China and America to restore their relations.
This was the time when America imposed an arms embargo on South Asian countries as a result Pakistan fell into a crisis with American sanctions on one hand and Bangladesh on the other.
After the independence of Bangladesh, China came forward with Pakistan’s support and their friendship got stronger.
The dynamics of international politics change with time and international relations are held based on interests. These relations are purely built on political and economic interests with no room for sentiments and emotional friendships.
In the 1970s, Pakistan initiated its race for nuclear power. Despite American pressure to restrain from the nuclear power race, and with China’s crucial support, Pakistan established its nuclear plant by 1990. This strained Pak-US relations.
After the partition, Pakistan, with the help of Britain, annexed Balochistan and, in the meantime, provided military bases to America and sustained its cordial relation with China as well. Meanwhile, the Baloch national struggle for independence continued, starting in 1948, 1958, 1962 and then in 1970. These uprisings from time to time were often successfully barred by Pakistan with the help of China, the US and along with other countries, such as Iran.
Due to inner weaknesses, these insurgencies against the Pakistani occupation gradually lost their intensity. Undoubtedly, the Baloch national struggle has economically and politically marred Pakistan. However, it had refrained from harming foreign powers, including China, as its sole and central target is Pakistan.
The current Baloch insurgency took a strong grip by the end of the 1990s which is way far more intense than the previous ones.
Keeping in mind the flaws and mistakes of the past, it has turned into an organized body continuing systematically and leaving a powerful country like China helpless today. It has successfully persuaded that no project can flourish on Baloch land without its consent. They will not allow any power to come and advance such projects which are a threat to Baloch identity. Today it marks the success of this struggle that no country is ready to invest in Balochistan.
China’s interests are concerned with Balochistan and it would never give up the Baloch land. Such international powers tend to exploit the occupied land to fulfil their economic desires and China, an economic giant, is helping Pakistan to continue its occupation in Balochistan to maintain its economic power dynamics.
China’s global ambitions took shape in 2013 with the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a massive economic project aimed at connecting 71 countries across three continents through land and maritime routes. Under the BRI, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was initiated with an initial investment of $43 billion, later increasing to $65 billion.
The most significant part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor passes through Balochistan, which connects China with the rest of the countries through the Baloch Sea, which will give China economic and military superiority over other world powers. In the 19th century, Great Britain had declared India as a golden bird, but when the same British were expelled from India, the golden bird was impoverished. Similarly, today Baloch land and sea are a golden bird for China and Pakistan.
The interests of China and Pakistan are in maintaining the occupation of Balochistan and China is helping Pakistan to achieve these interests. Pakistan needs Chinese investment due to its economic instability and China needs the Baloch Sea to maintain its economic power. This is what unites Pakistan and China and for that, they boast about this friendship being higher than the Himalayas and deeper than the seas.
This is the fifth insurgency for the independence of Balochistan. This struggle is surely en route to victory with the modified policies of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA). So far, the Majeed Brigade unit of BLA has conducted several big attacks on Pak-China joint projects and the operatives of these projects. Five of these attacks have been made on Chinese engineers, the Chinese Consulate and professors of the Confucius Institute of China.
Majeed Brigade first attacked Chinese engineers on August 11, 2017, at Dalbandain, the second attack on the Chinese Consulate in Karachi in 2018 and a year later, the third attack on the PC Hotel in Gwadar, where Chinese investors were staying.
A fourth attack was also carried out on Chinese engineers in Gwadar. Majeed Brigade’s most significant and fifth attack which was the most influential based on the game-changer strategy for the Baloch liberation movement was carried out on April 26 on the Chinese teachers of the Confucius Institute in Karachi University. This attack was the first fidayee attack in the history of Majeed Brigade and Baloch national movement, which was carried out by a Baloch woman, Shari Baloch.
This is one of the most successful attacks of Majeed Brigade which made it clear to the world that the Baloch people can go to any extent to defend their land.
Confucius Institute is an institution for the development and promotion of the Chinese language and culture throughout the world. The Confucius Institute is run by Chinese Communist Party officials. China is spending $10 billion annually on various projects of the Confucius Institute.
In Pakistan since 2013, the Confucius Institute has been established in Karachi University, NED University, LUMS University and other institutions, where Chinese language, history and culture are taught, but due to the attacks of BLA Majeed Brigade, teachers of the Confucius Institute in Karachi University and NED University have returned to China. This 70-year-old friendship between Pakistan and China is getting weak after these attacks.
In 2016, China demanded tighter security to protect its people, after which Pakistan created three special divisions of the army that would only protect Chinese interests, however, the continued attacks on Chinese interests by Baloch organizations made China think that its interests and people are not safe in Pakistan, especially in occupied Balochistan.
Seeing Pakistan’s helplessness, China has again started discussions on security issues, and if Pakistan continues to play this role in the future, it is assumed that Pak-China relations might worsen in the coming times. After these attacks, other countries, including China, will also be forced to review their policies regarding investments in Balochistan.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Balochistan Post or any of its editors.
Note: Zahir Baloch, the writer of this article, is no more. A close friend of his sent this article to The Balochistan Post.