Will link CPEC to corridor involving India, says China
New Delhi was against ChinaPak Economic Corridor as it passes via PoK
BEIJING: The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will be connected to a corridor that involves India, Bangladesh and Myanmar through the sea, Beijing announced on Tuesday in its continuing efforts to bring Asia and Europe under President Xi Jinping’s multi-million dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Part of the plan is to link the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean, according to the “Vision for Maritime Cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative”.
“Ocean cooperation will focus on building the China-Indian Ocean-Africa-Mediterranean Sea Blue Economic Passage, by linking the China-Indochina Peninsula Economic Corridor, running westward from the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean, and connecting the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the Bangladesh-China-India-details Myanmar Economic Corridor (BCIM-EC),” said the document released by Xinhua news agency.
New Delhi has repeatedly objected to the CPEC because of “sovereignty issues” as it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
This was the primary reason why it boycotted the high-profile Belt and Road Forum held in Beijing last month.
Though India is part of BCIM-EC, progress on developing that corridor has been slow, partly because of New Delhi’s security concerns.
The document did not share on how the land corridors, such as CPEC and BCIM-EC, will be linked to the ocean but it was a clear indication of China’s longterm plan. The idea, the document said, is to synchronise development plans and promote joint actions by countries along the Maritime Silk Road, setting up the “all-dimensional, multitiered and broad-scoped Blue Partnership”.
The document was released by China’s top planning body, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the State Oceanic Administration.
The announcement came a day after Pakistan announced that China had offered to include a dam project on the Indus river, which India objects to, as part of the CPEC.
New Delhi is likely to be uneasy with the BCIM-EC being unilaterally included within the expanding scope of the BRI. China, it seems, isn’t overtly bothered about India’s concerns.