The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Project and its impact on India

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a collection of infrastructure projects that are currently under construction throughout Pakistan. It was originally valued at $46 billion. Today its value is worth $62 billion. Thus the economic stakes are clearly high both for the Chinese and Pakistani governments. But this project will also have an impact on neighbouring countries especially India. The project will allow Chinese cargo to be transported overland to the port of Gwadar in Pakistan. CPEC is part of the larger Belt and Road initiative of China which seeks to revive the ancient silk route and increase Chinese influence.

A major cause for concern for India is that a part of CPEC passes through the disputed region of Kashmir. This could complicate already problematic discussions in the future. No CPEC project is located near the Line of Control however. CPEC could still strengthen Pakistani control over this disputed area by establishing this new economic reality. Chinese role in the Kashmir dispute could also increase because of this and this would go against India’s stated policy of no third party involvement in this dispute.

CPEC project will mainly take place in Gilgit Baltistan. During Prime Minister Modi’s visit to China in 2015, Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj reportedly told Chinese Premier Xi Jinping that projects passing through Gilgit Baltistan are “unacceptable” as they require construction in the claimed territory. This stance was reiterated by the foreign minister during a meeting in August 2016 with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, stating that India would “resolutely oppose” the corridor in Kashmir. In May 2016, India’s Minister of State and External Affairs, Vijay Kumar Singh raised concerns regarding CPEC. In December 2017, China unveiled its plans to extend CPEC to Afghanistan which has sparked concerns in India. Iran’s Minister for Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi expressed interest in exploring avenues available under CPEC while leading a high level delegation visiting Karachi Port Trust in April 2018.

Some have also warned that India might lose heavily if it remains opposed and isolated from the project. Pakistan and China have both constantly accused India’s intelligence agency RAW of plans to subvert CPEC. India had not objected to the Chinese construction of the Karakoram Highway which was built between 1959 and 1979. It further did not oppose the construction of the Mangla Dam, undertaken with World Bank funding and British technical assistance in southern Kashmir – a region which India claims as its own territory. Thus CPEC is the first time that India has officially opposed a Chinese-Pakistani economic project.

New Delhi has recently raised the issue of the China-Pakistan economic corridor at the UN. It is indicative that the issue was raised in the Human Rights Council of the UN. This shows that New Delhi considers this issue to be not only a foreign policy one, but also something that affects its basic rights as a nation. These rights are obviously economic in this case. But they are also strategic. China is already Pakistan’s closest ally in the world. This corridor will further tie Pakistan to China and thus reduce the influence of Western countries like the United States on Islamabad. This will reduce the chances of peace between India and Pakistan but also possibly peace in Afghanistan. This is the broad strategic perspective. However here the issue is economic development and here New Delhi has stated that this is a right of every country in the world. Despite this the economic development of one country or a group of countries cannot be at the expense of other countries.

The Indian argument is that this is what the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor seeks to do. China already has close economic ties with Pakistan. So a separate economic corridor is really not required in this regard. It will give a significantly unfair advantage to the Chinese in the Pakistani economy than any other country has. China has to consult with neighbouring countries like India before going through with this corridor. This is not simply a bilateral issue between China and Pakistan. India is not against Chinese or for that matter any other foreign involvement in the Pakistani economy. However it is against China or any other country gaining exclusive access to the Pakistani economy. If India had signed a similar deal with any of its smaller neighbours there would have been a hue and cry at the international level, and certainly from the Chinese. So the same applies in this case.

Greater physical connectivity between China and Pakistan is not the problem but it should not cut out other countries. The playing field should be fair to all the countries concerned. India has cited UNGA resolution 41/128 which talks about the right to economic development. According to the resolution the right to development includes-

• Full sovereignty over natural resources
• Self-determination
• Popular participation in development
• Equality of opportunity
• Creation of favourable conditions for the enjoyment of other civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights

According to India the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor fulfils none of the above criteria. India is also opposed to the larger Belt and Road Initiative of which the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a part for similar reasons. Finally India reaffirmed its commitment to the implementation of the right to development.

Whether or not raising of this issue at the UN will have an impact remains to be seen. The Chinese and the Pakistanis will give their own arguments at the UN and India has to deal with them accordingly. This will be not be an easy task as both China and Pakistan have strong interests in this regard and India might not receive support from the rest of the world. India has to convince the international community of the justness of its cause in this regard and also make other countries see that their own interests would be affected through this project. Only then can it hope to get some favourable response at the UN.

-Anirban Sen

Adjunct Researcher