China rejects U.S.' CPEC assertion

China has rebuffed the statement made by the Trump administration about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), citing that its One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative, which dictates the CPEC, was not directed against third parties.

"We have repeatedly said that the CPEC is an economic cooperation initiative that is not directed against third parties and has nothing to do with territorial sovereignty disputes and does not affect China's principled stance on the Kashmir issue," The Express Tribune quoted the Chinese Foreign Ministry, as saying.

Earlier this week, U.S. Defence Secretary James Mattis said to the Senate Armed Services Committee, "The One Belt, One Road also goes through the disputed territory, and I think that it itself shows the vulnerability of trying to establish that sort of a dictate."

He had added that in a globalised world, there are many belts and many roads, and no one nation should put itself into a position of dictating the 'One belt, One Road'.

China came up with its One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative in 2013.

The project seeks to enable a 21st century "Silk Route", comprising both overland and maritime access routes through installation of new, as well as upgradation of existing transport and communication infrastructure in countries hoping to reap the dividends.

In a May 2017 meeting in Beijing, the Chinese President had called the OBOR the "project of the century".

The OBOR is now being renamed as Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to overcome the limitations of the earlier nomenclature, "One Belt, One Road", because it is expected to involve many roads and many belts.

The human rights activists have, time and again, spoken about and highlighted the growing atrocities of Pakistan on the indigenous people of Balochistan and deteriorating human rights situation as a result of the CPEC.