Daily Times

Over the years, thanks to the nurturing of generations of leaders, and people from all sectors of both countries, Pakistan-China friendship has flourished, and currently Pakistan and China are celebrating 65 years of successful diplomatic relations. No matter how the circumstances have been in the two countries, how the dynamics of the region and the world changed, bilateral relations of Pakistan and China have enjoyed sound and steady growth. Pakistan and China have always respected, understood and supported each other on issues concerning their respective core interests.

Pakistan acted positively as China’s backdoor channel during its years of diplomatic isolation. Pakistan became the bridge between Richard Nixon and Mao Zedong, and frontline in Beijing’s strategic struggles with the Soviet Union during the late stages of the Cold War. From China’s prism, it sees a strong and capable Pakistan as an asset to China in its own right. Therefore, relations between Pakistan and China in historical retrospect have remained almost exclusively through a South Asian security framework. In identifying the dimensions of Pak-China relationship, it should be seen from three perspectives that are security, political and commercial relations.

Pakistan-China defence/security relations: Pakistan and China have never been treaty allies and their armies come from radically different traditions. However, China has helped Pakistan to develop a set of capabilities to ensure that Pakistan is secure and stable in front of her neighbours. Central to this was China’s backing for Pakistan’s nuclear ambitions. Close collaborations on an area of such high sensitivity have built a level of trust between the countries and militaries that a more conventional security partnership might never have delivered. Even as Sino-Indian relationships improved, India’s rise as potential competitor to Beijing has further reinforced its original rationale for partnership with Pakistan.

Pakistan-China political relations: Pakistan has always enjoyed cordial political relations with China. Political relations between two countries have been characterised by two main dimensions, primarily regular high-level exchange of political leadership between two countries, which has opened new vistas and avenues of bilateral relations. Second, the outward manifestation of this relationship is an exemplary cooperation between the two countries at the United Nation and other international fora. The depth of this cooperation can be gauged from the fact that China has been the consistent supporter of Pakistan at the UN General Assembly and Security Council. China has not hesitated to employ veto in the UNSC if any move is counterproductive for Pakistan in the arena of security. This has been political as well security relief, which Pakistan acknowledges that as a nation it will always be remembered. This is also true that China has always been in support of Pakistan for facilitating Civil Nuclear Deal, Pakistan’s membership of the Nuclear Supplier Group (NSG), and hindering Indian entry in the NSG, which is in the vital security interest of Pakistan. No doubt, our cooperation in the international organidation has been ‘sweeter than honey’.

Pakistan-China commercial relations: As mentioned earlier, the relationship between Pakistan and China was initially based on security and defence cooperation, and was later diversified to incorporate political, economic, educational and trade areas. A deep economic alliance between Pakistan and China is essential for sustainability of this relationship.

In this regard, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) exhibits the zenith of commercial collaboration between the two countries. The CPEC is an important part of President Xi Jinping’s “One Belt One Road (OBOR)” initiative. The CPEC should be seen as long-term comprehensive cooperation framework. The principal of mutual benefits, wide consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits and inclusive development are embedded in the CPEC.

China has specific objectives, and the first is to build the corridor, which is part of President Xi’s pet project of the Silk Road Economic Belt, and would be constructed using’s Pakistan strategic location to bypass the firth of the Malacca Straits. Second, the corridor will unlock the potential of the landlocked western China, especially Xinxiang. Third, by establishing its physical footprint in Gilgit-Baltistan, China hopes to cut off access of Uighur militants’ into Afghanistan and Pakistan. Pakistan sees the project as an historic economic opportunity that would help Pakistan mitigating its economic woes, especially energy and infrastructure development.

The writer is a freelance columnist, and can be reached at, saudzafar5@gmail.com