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In Context
- Recently, India slammed the move by Pakistan and China to involve third countries in CPEC projects.
More about the news
- About:
- China and Pakistan extended a welcome to any country joining the multi-billion dollar economic corridor for “mutual beneficial cooperation”.
- This proposal was made at a meeting of the CPEC Joint Working Group on International Cooperation and Coordination (JWG-ICC).
- India’s stand:
- The Ministry of External Affairs has reiterated that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is an ‘inherently illegal, illegitimate, and unacceptable‘ endeavour, and any new nation participating in it would be infringing on India’s geographic sovereignty.
- Significance:
- The invitation by Pakistan and China to countries comes after reports emerged of the project stalling due to ground-level corruption, resistance by locals in places like Balochistan, and attacks on Chinese engineers and workers by Islamic fundamentalists and terrorists.
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)
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India’s Concerns
- Violation of Indian Sovereignty:
- The project violates the sovereignty of India as it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), which is a disputed territory between India and Pakistan.
- As per well-established international conventions, no construction is allowed in any disputed territory, without taking the other country into confidence.
- Exploitation of Natural Resources:
- Under CPEC, China plans to build two mega-dams on Indus, named Bunji Dam and Bhasha Dam.
- This will put a heavy strain on the Indus Water Basin.
- Security Concerns for India:
- Increase in China’s Activities in IOR:
- With Gwadar being a part of CPEC, India fears an escalation of PLA Navy activities in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
- Threat to Indian Trade and Connectivity:
- Majority of Indian tangible imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
- China can easily create impediments to its access to the Middle-east in case of a conflict, jeopardizing India’s energy security.
- Enhanced threat from Pakistan:
- With the overhauling of the Karakoram Highway, Pakistan will enjoy an advantage in mobilizing troops as well as heavy military equipment to PoK.
- At the same time, an increase in financial returns to Pakistan through CPEC may expand its ability to fund military infrastructure as well as state-sponsored terrorism in Kashmir, thus destabilizing the region.
- Increase in China’s Activities in IOR:
Way ahead
- Maintain Communication:
- Experts have advocated that India maintain communication and cordial relations with its neighbors.
- In such a context, India has done well to keep participating in forums like Shanghai Cooperation Organization to maintain communication with both Pakistan and China.
- International Collaboration:
- It is well settled that India cannot compete with China in the matter of financing developmental projects like CPEC in other developing countries.
- Therefore, it needs to collaborate with agencies like Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to offer soft loans to save them from falling into the Chinese debt trap.
- Security Concerns:
- Developing countries, especially the countries of Southeast Asia have pinned their hopes on India to counter China’s hegemony in the region.
- Here, India needs to build on alliances like Quad to maintain the balance of power in the Indo-pacific region.
Pakistan Occupied Kashmir
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Source: TH
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