Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang came two days before the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit so that he could devote them to bilateral issues. In a way, this is sideline-summitteering carried to a whole The bulk of his programme seems to have been frontloaded for Monday, with the highlight being the virtual ceremony for the inauguration of the Gwadar International Airport, built at a cost of $230 million provided by the Chinese government as a grant, symbolised a lot of things about the relationship. The centrality of Gwadar port to CPEC was highlighted. China also gave the Airport to Pakistan, thereby showing how much it valued the relationship. It also showed the high value China places on infrastructure as a driver of development. It was thus in the fitness of things that future developments at Gwadar figured prominently on the talks of Mr Li and his delegation with his Pakistani counterpart, Shehbaz Sharif.
One of the obstacles in the building of the Airport was security. Indeed, the only attack on the Chinese Ambassador himself was carried out at the Gwadar hotel he was staying at, ans there have been other attacks killing Chinese nationals, all the way from Gwadar to Dasu, where a hydroelectricity project has been afflicted by attacks at different times. This is probably why Mr Li also met the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Gen Shamshad Mirza, and Chief of Army Staff Gen Asim Munir. It might be noticed that Mr Sharif has also taken a serious view of the issue of security, understanding that this is a potential deal-breaker, and as the recipient of the expertise of Chinese workers, Pakistan is the one really benefiting from their presence. Unfortunately, this has also been understood by Baloch separatists as well as sectarian terrorists, as well as those international forces inimical to Pakistan. India has a visceral dislike of both Pakistan and China, and has become increasingly close to the USA. The USA has been developing differences with China, and is not pleased that Pakistan has not served as its tool in opposing China.
This is the real reason why CPEC is so important to both China and Pakistan, It represents the transformation of the relationship from one based on security to one based on economics, in way that the US-Pak relationship has not really evolved. The Pakistan government needs to single-minded in its approach towards this relationship, and show as much commitment in future as it is doing at present.
