Simran Sodhi

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 17

Adding to India’s unease in the regional security paradigm, Pakistan and China today decided to jointly produce multi-role combat jets and missiles. The decision was reached in Beijing today after the top military brass of Pakistan and China met.The move is bound to upset many security equations in the region as China “appreciated” Pakistan’s efforts to protect China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and expressed its desire to further strengthen military cooperation between the two countries.Pakistan Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, currently visiting China, held separate meetings with Gen Fan Changlong, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) that is headed by President XI Jinping, and Fang Fenghui, chief of the Joint Staff Department under the CMC. While officially the Chinese foreign ministry maintained that “China and Pakistan maintain normal defence exchanges and relevant cooperation”, the Chinese state-run media ran news reports that detailed the meetings held between Bajwa and Chinese Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli.According to a report in the Global Times, Zhang suggested that the two countries should enhance defence and security cooperation and push forward the building of the CPEC in an orderly manner.Bajwa reportedly said Pakistan viewed the relations with China as the “cornerstone of its foreign policy and its army will always be a staunch supporter of bilateral friendship”. To ensure the smooth construction of the CPEC, the Pakistan armed forces will resolutely safeguard its security, he said.The Chinese Defence Ministry quoted Fan as having said that CPEC “is the flagship project of ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative and leaders of both countries have attached great importance to it and positive progress has been made”.“Fan stressed that China appreciates Pakistani military’s positive efforts to safeguard the security of the CPEC and is willing to further strengthen the cooperation with Pakistan, so as to promote the pragmatic cooperation between the two militaries in all fields to a new high.”Masood Khalid, Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, in a briefing, said Pakistan had deployed more than 15,000 troops to protect CPEC, and that the country’s navy had raised a security contingent to protect the Gwadar Port. The port, which was built and is now operated by China, is a key part of CPEC.