China, Pakistan to hold first anti-terror drills in 5 years amid rising attacks

Islamabad — 

China said Tuesday it volition nonstop troops to Pakistan aboriginal this period for the countries archetypal associated counterterrorism subject workout successful 5 years to heighten information practice with its South Asian neighbour and adjacent ally.

The announcement follows reports that Beijing is pushing Islamabad to licence its information unit to safeguard thousands of Chinese nationals moving successful Pakistan from deadly violent attacks. It besides comes amid a spike successful violent attacks against Pakistani information forces attributed to oregon claimed by the outlawed Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, commonly known arsenic TTP.

On Tuesday, China’s Defense Ministry said that the Pakistan-hosted “Warrior-VIII workout is acceptable to statesman successful precocious November and volition tally until mid-December “with the purpose … to heighten the capableness for conducting associated counterterrorism operations,” according to Chinese authorities media.

The ministry said the workout volition impact troops from the Western Theater Command of China’s People's Liberation Army.

“The 2 sides volition prosecute successful multi-level and mixed grooming crossed assorted specialties and signifier unrecorded unit drills successful accordance with the existent combat process,” according to the authorities media report.

China and Pakistan past conducted associated counterterrorism subject drills successful 2019.

String of attacks

Last month, a termination car bombing conscionable extracurricular the airdrome successful the confederate Pakistani larboard metropolis of Karachi killed 2 Chinese engineers. The victims were returning to enactment aft a vacation successful Thailand connected a task nether the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a multibillion-dollar hold of President Xi Jinping’s planetary Belt and Road Initiative.

In March, a termination car weaponry onslaught successful bluish Pakistan killed 5 Chinese workers and their section driver.

The repeated targeting of its nationals reportedly angered China, prompting it to impulse Pakistan to negociate a associated information absorption strategy to guarantee the information of Chinese citizens successful the country.

The Pakistani authorities has dismissed the alleged Chinese diplomatic pressure, however, arsenic “media speculation” and an effort “to make confusion” regarding Islamabad’s narration with Beijing.

“Pakistan and China person a robust dialog and practice connected a scope of issues, including counterterrorism and information of Chinese nationals successful Pakistan,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mumtaz Baloch told reporters past Thursday astatine her play quality conference.

“We volition proceed to enactment with our Chinese brothers for the information and information of Chinese nationals, projects, and institutions successful Pakistan,” she stated.

Shaking ties

Baloch added that attempts to undermine the communal spot and practice betwixt the 2 countries volition not succeed, nor volition the 2 countries “allow immoderate efforts oregon stories to derail the Pakistan-China strategical partnership.”

Speaking astatine a seminar successful Islamabad conscionable days aft the Karachi car weaponry attack, Chinese Ambassador Jiang Zaidong publically questioned the big government’s information measures to deter threats to Chinese nationals.

"It is unacceptable for america to beryllium attacked doubly successful lone six months,” Jiang stated. He urged Islamabad to instrumentality “effective remedial measures to forestall the recurrence of specified panic acts and guarantee that perpetrators are identified, caught, and punished.”

Pakistan dismissed the Chinese envoy’s remarks arsenic “perplexing” and contrary to established diplomatic traditions betwixt the neighbors.

The Pakistani effect was unprecedented, and Jiang’s nationalist admonishment of Islamabad highlighted the strains arising from attacks connected Chinese nationals that person resulted successful the nonaccomplishment of astatine slightest 21 lives implicit the past 5 years.

'Afghan panic sanctuaries'

The associated drills betwixt Pakistani and Chinese troops travel amid a melodramatic surge successful deadly militant attacks connected information forces and civilians successful Pakistan, which authorities accidental are being orchestrated from “TTP sanctuaries” successful neighboring Afghanistan. The country’s Islamist Taliban leaders cull the allegations.

Yue Xiaoyong, China’s peculiar envoy for Afghan affairs, visited Islamabad this week, wherever Pakistani officials reportedly shared with him grounds regarding TTP’s beingness successful Afghanistan and the menace it poses to determination stability.

Neither Islamabad nor Beijing has commented connected the media reports. A little post-meeting Pakistani connection said the treatment centered connected the Afghan situation, with some sides reaffirming "the captious relation of neighboring countries for a peaceful and unchangeable Afghanistan."