Pakistan-China Relations

What determines Foreign Policy? There are no permanent friends and foes in international relations. The only permanent thing is national interest. It is a na tions selfinterest which determines its foreign policy. Pakistan- China Both countries are immediate neighbors. There is no conflict between them. Both countries have cooperated with each other diplomatically. Their friendship is based on sovereign equality, brotherhood and mutual cooperation. Although China is a great power, it has shown no hegemonic designs and has never interfered in the internal affairs of Pakistan. Strategic partnership Their strategic partnership remains as reliable as ever. They are committed to fight against terrorism, separatism and religious extremism, which is necessary for the stability, peace, progress and prosperity of the region. China has come to the help of Pakistan whenever it was needed. Apart from several minor projects, the very prominent symbols of friendship in Pakistan are The Karakoram Highway Deep sea Gwadar Port Chashma Nuclear power plants Heavy Mechanical Complex at Taxila, Subsidized construction of frigates, Joint production of JF-17 Thunder aircraft, etc. 1. Energy crisis issue At present, China is helping Pakistan in the most needed energy sector. The Pakistan-China Joint Economic Working Group is an ideal platform to discuss energy related issues. Moreover, energy crisis makes the situation worse. Ways and means need to be found to provide enabling environment to Chinese investors. Chinese investors should be encouraged and facilitated for participation in related energy projects. China is the only country that has been persistently helping Pakistan in the nuclear domain of power generation. This cooperation needs to be carried further and transfer of technology may be sought so that Pakistan could manufacture nuclear power reactors. 2. Mutual Trade Mutual trade is increasing slowly but steadily. It was only $ 10 million in 1953. In 2010 it was $ 9 billion and it is expected to increase to $ 15 billion in the coming years. China is Pakistans largest trade partner at the bilateral level. At the regional tier, Pakistan is Chinas second largest trade partner in South Asia, while India is the first. However, Pak -China bilateral trade suffers from an imbalance. Pakistans imports from China exceed 6.5 b USD, while exports are merely 2.2 b USD. Hence, we need to review our policies to correct this imbalance. 3. Official visits There have been mutual visits of top leaders, middle level leaders, scholars, businessmen and others. Besides government, people to people contact has increased. The depth of the relationship can be seen by the fact that in the recent past, the President of Pakistan,

Asif Ali Zardari, visited China in July last year, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, visited China in May 2011. Earlier, in December 2010, HE Wen Jiabao, Premier of the State Council of the Peoples Republic of China, visited Pakistan 4. Military and hardware supplier China has all along been a reliable supplier of military hardware and technology related know-how. Keeping in view the strings attached to the supply of military hardware by America and other Western countries, Pakistan should further build on this relationship and diversify its critical dependencies by initiating new projects with China. It would be worthwhile to join Chinese ventures in strategic domains like aircraft career and nuclear submarines. 5. China realizes Pakistan's importance in the region , and especially so in the context of Afghanistan. China thinks that without Pakistan there can be no durable peace in Afghanistan. Pakistan should urge China to play an active role in national reconciliation in Afghanistan.

6. Presence in SAARC and SCO China has an observer status in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and likewise Pakistan enjoys an observer status at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Pakistan and China are celebrating 60th anniversary of their bilateral relations. Both countries have declared the year 2011 as the year for celebrating Pakistan-China diplomatic relations. 7. Necessary measures need to be adopted to smooth any wrinkles in the relationship There have also been some interesting regional as well as global developments during recent years which require further strengthening of Pak- China rapport. Pak-China interaction presently is limited to mostly inter-government contacts. People to people contacts are few and far between and play scant role in strengthening the bilateral relations. A sustained robust relationship would need understanding of each others culture, language, ways of life, regular people to people contact, interaction betwe en media, joint participation in creative arts like cinema and music etc. Exchange of students, tourism and visits of cultural troupes keep mutual ties refreshed. Collaboration at think tanks level helps in correcting any distortion in perceptions. MAJOR IRRITANTS China has always provided political, economic, humanitarian and diplomatic support to Pakistan. However, for the last two years there has been a concerted campaign in the Indian and Western media to malign this relationship by blowing minor issues out of proportion 1. Chinese aid volume during the 2010 super floods 2. The pulling out of government owned Chinese bank from Iran-Pakistan pipeline project 3. 2011 terrorist attack in Xinjiang in which involvement of Pakistani elements was pointed by China 4. The withholding of time sensitive funds of Rs 274 billion for Nelum-Jehlum hydropower project, on Indian pressure 5. Killing of Chinese tourists in June 2013 are cited as signs of weakening ties Though Pak-China bilateral relations are very robust, it is obvious that in international affairs nothing can be taken for granted. 1. Bureaucratic red tape It is very reassuring that China wants to see Pakistan as a prosperous and developed country and regards its problems sympathetically. Bureaucratic red tape and inefficient handling stand in the way of speedy execution of MoUs (Memorandum of Understandings) signed between the two countries. Over one hundred MoUs are awaiting concrete implementation measures. 2. Lack of Investment areas In terms of investment, Chinese investors highlight the lack of investment areas in Pakistan. 3. Presence of Uighur militants in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Media reports about the presence of Uighur militants in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) is another irritant in the bilateral relationship. While there are no precise figures as to how many Uighur militants are present in Pakistan, it is unlikely that the actual number would be very high; it could not be more than a hundred. However Pak-China cooperation in this regard continues. 4. International propaganda against Pakistan-China friendship Another irritant is the international propaganda against Pakistan-China friendship. Media, particularly Indian and Western, is full of reports about small events, such as the protest against Zulfiqarabad mega city, Gawadar port etc. are highlighted as signs of antiChinese sentiments in Pakistan. This concerted campaign is aimed at the younger generation in China to malign them against Pakistan and thus weaken China- Pakistan relations.

TRANSITION OF CHINESE LEADERSHIP The transition of leadership in China has taken place. The new leadership's priorities include eradication of corruption promotion of economics and development of less developed regions of the country The changing global environment, especially the presence of the U.S in Asia-Pacific; and resurgence of conflicts in the region present new challenges which were not faced by the previous leadership of China. Pakistan should strengthen its rapport with the new leadership and look for new opportunities which the change in leadership and its revised priorities may throw up. RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Indian involvement in Afghanistan is harming Pakistans core interests. India is carrying out military, political and intelligence activities under the cover of economic development. Pakistan needs to align its policy with China to counter balance Indian influence in Afghanistan. Pakistan and China should form a joint strategy for ensuring a stable and viable Afghanistan after the departure of the foreign forces. 2. China is not ready to annoy the U.S; it would not allow its support for Pakistan to impinge on its relations with Washington. Strategic planners of Pakistan should factor this limitation in their national strategic calculus. 3. Security of Chinese personnel working on various projects in Pakistan should be ensured. 4. Western and Indian media is projecting Pakistan-China relations in a negative way. Pakistan and China should take active measures to counter this campaign. Interaction between media groups on both sides is necessary to counter international media campaign against the two countries. To bridge the language gap, institutes should be established for teaching Chinese language to Pakistani people. 5. China offers scholarship programme for Pakistani Students, Pakistan should initiate such programme on reciprocal basis. 6. China suggested alternative energy generation technologies in wind and solar domain should be incentivized. Pakistan should seek Chinese help in acquiring the capability of making nuclear power plants 7. Pakistan should join strategic Chinese projects like aircraft carrier and nuclear submarines at R& D stages. 8. Pakistan needs to make deliberate effort for maintaining friendly relations with China; continuation of high profile friendship should not be taken for granted. CONCLUSION Pakistan enjoys good friendly ties with China. However there are some limitations of China which must be taken into consideration. China cannot be a replacement of the U.S for Pakistan, and there are issues where Beijing will not favour Pakistan beyond a point that could annoy America. Trade imbalance between the two countries is not in favour of Pakistan. Pakistan needs to improve its markets to reduce the trade gap. China sees a greater role of Pakistan in peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan. Likewise Pakistan should pursue China to take the lead in intra- Afghan reconciliation efforts and post 2014 stabilization of the country Pakistan needs to address issues which concern China. Beijing is interested in promoting trade and investment in Pakistan; however lack of infrastructure and energy crisis are major hurdles in this regard. These impediments should be removed through a long term strategy. IMPORTANT EVENTS 1950 Pakistan becomes the third non-communist country, and first Muslim one, to recognize the China. 1951 Beijing and Karachi establish diplomatic relations. 1963 Pakistan cedes the Trans-Karakoram Tract to China, ending border disputes. 1970 Pakistan helps the U.S. arrange the 1972 Nixon visit to China. 1978 The Karakoram Highway linking the mountainous Northern Pakistan with Western China officially opens. 1986 China and Pakistan reach a comprehensive nuclear co-operation agreement. 1999 A 300-megawatt nuclear power plant, built with Chinese help in Punjab province, is completed. 2001 A joint-ventured Chinese-Pakistani tank, the MBT-2000 (Al-Khalid) MBT is completed. 2002 The building of the Gwadar deep sea port begins, with China as the primary investor. 2007 The Sino-Pakistani joint-ventured multirole fighter aircraft the JF-17 Thunder is formally rolled out. 2008 China and Pakistan sign a free trade agreement. 2008 To build a railway through the Karakoram Highway, in order to link China's rail network to Gwadar Port. 2009 The ISI arrest several suspected Uyghur terrorists seeking refuge in Pakistan. 2010 Pakistan and China conduct a joint anti-terrorism drill. 2010 China donates $260 million in dollars to flood hit Pakistan and sends 4 military rescue helicopters to assist [41] 2010 Wen Jiabao visits Pakistan. More than 30 billion dollars worth of deals were signed. 2013 - Management of Gwadar port is handed over to state-run Chinese Overseas Port Holdings 2013 Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visits Pakistan