'Unacceptable for China': Beijing publicly slams Pakistan. Here's why

Ensuring the safety and security of Chinese nationals working in Pakistan under CPEC is reportedly costing Islamabad millions of dollars

China on Tuesday raised its growing security concerns with Pakistan publicly, and hoped for improved safety and security for Chinese nationals working in Pakistan. Beijing also emphasised that both countries could crack down on the terrorists targeting Chinese nationals jointly.

 

"We could crack down on these terrorists jointly," Pakistan's The News International quoted Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Jiang Zaidong, as stating during an address at an international conference on "China at 75: A Journey of Progress, Transformation and Leadership", organised by the Pakistan-China Institute (PCI) in Islamabad on Tuesday.

 

Demanding that Beijing wants to see steps taken against perpetrators of terrorist attacks, Jiang reportedly said, "It is unacceptable for China and we do hope that the Pakistani side will ensure the safety and security of its (Chinese) nationals working in Pakistan." 

 

Stating that the security of Chinese citizens is paramount for Chinese President Xi Jinping, Jiang said that Xi has emphasised this in his meetings with Pakistani leaders on multiple occasions.

 

Jiang's public remarks, which may indicate growing impatience with Pakistan in Beijing, come after a suicide attack near Karachi's airport earlier in October, claimed by the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), left two Chinese citizens dead and 10 others injured. The separatist group BLA, which accuses China and Pakistan of exploitation of the resource-rich Pakistani province of Balochistan, has carried out similar suicide bomb attacks in the last two years in Karachi targeting foreign nationals. 

 

Under the $60-billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), thousands of Chinese personnel are working in Pakistan on several projects.

 

According to The News International report, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar responded to Jiang's public remarks and assured the Chinese ambassador that no stone would remain unturned to ensure the security of Chinese nationals working in Pakistan.

 

Dar added that he would soon visit China, along with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, for a dialogue in early November, where they would share the details on how Islamabad has taken action and legally pursued perpetrators of terrorist attacks. 

   

According to Dar, many of those perpetrators had already been apprehended. "(The) Chinese are upset and we must accept our mistakes...," Dar reportedly said.

 

Dar added that Pakistan was committed to expanding CPEC phase-II.

 

Securing Chinese interests costing Pakistan millions

 

Earlier in October, Pakistan reportedly approved an additional budget of 45 billion Pakistani Rupees (PKR), or about $162 million, for the armed forces, mainly to strengthen their ability to protect Chinese commercial interests in Pakistan. 

 

This was the second major supplementary grant for the Pakistani armed forces after the country's federal Budget was passed in June. Previously, PKR 60 billion (approximately $216.2 million) was approved for Operation Azm-e-Istehkam, a counter-terrorism operation launched by Pakistan in 2024, aimed at eliminating terrorist remnants and dismantling extremist networks in the wake of repeated attacks on Chinese nationals and interests. 

 

These supplementary grants are in addition to the Pakistani armed forces' PKR 2.127 trillion (approximately $7.67 billion) defence budget.

 

Due to the increasing number of terrorist attacks, Beijing has also reportedly demanded that Islamabad sign an agreement on anti-terrorism cooperation to address its security concerns.

 

Under CPEC phase-I, China and Pakistan have completed 38 projects worth $25.2 billion. Out of these, 17 projects, valued at $18 billion, belong to the energy sector alone.

 

About 26 projects worth $26.8 billion are said to be in the pipeline, many of which have been included in CPEC phase-II. However, security concerns have reportedly slowed down progress on these projects.

 

The CPEC, launched in 2015 as part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative, is a key infrastructure project aimed at enhancing economic connectivity between China and Pakistan.