Latest news with #China-Pakistan
News18
8 hours ago
- Politics
- News18
India's Strategic Dilemma Amidst China-Pakistan Alliances
India's Strategic Dilemma Amidst China-Pakistan Alliances | #therightstand with Anand Narasimhan In a recent discussion, Sadanand Dhume analyzes India's strategic position amid rising tensions with China and Pakistan, emphasizing the need for increased defense spending and a stable relationship with Bangladesh, while reflecting on the complexities of regional geopolitics. n18oc_world News18 Mobile App -
News18
2 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Pakistan-China Game Plan Foiled: Why India Refused To Sign SCO Joint Statement
Last Updated: Rajnath Singh's dissent at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meet signals India's growing resolve to call out terror sympathisers, even on multilateral platforms In a major geopolitical move, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's refusal to sign the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) joint statement has exposed deep divisions within the grouping, dealt a blow to China's leadership credibility, and derailed a coordinated strategic narrative pushed by Beijing and Islamabad. Singh is currently in China's Qingdao to attend the SCO Defence Ministers' meeting. The summit is being attended by member states, including Russia, Pakistan and China, to discuss issues related to regional and international security. This marks the first time in the history of SCO that a joint communique was not adopted, signalling a serious fracture in consensus. Intelligence sources tell CNN-News18 that India's dissent was not a procedural objection, but a calculated disruption of what was a China-Pakistan strategic objective to corner India diplomatically. Rajnath Singh refused to sign the joint statement because it made no mention of the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 innocent lives, and failed to reflect India's strong position on terror. While skipping any mention of Pahalgam, the document mentioned Balochistan, tacitly accusing India of creating unrest there. Pahalgam's exclusion from the document appears to have been done at Pakistan's behest as its all-weather ally, China, currently holds the SCO Chair. What China And Pakistan Were Planning The plan was to reclaim victimhood by showcasing unrest in Balochistan as proof of India's interference, thereby justifying crackdowns, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings in the region. India's refusal effectively derailed this narrative offensive, sources said. Intelligence Dossiers, Satellite Proof Shared India had in advance shared intelligence dossiers and satellite imagery with SCO members, providing hard evidence of Pakistan's involvement in cross-border terrorism. These included updates on terror camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and proof of state complicity in sheltering terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. Despite this, China, as chair of the summit, attempted to sideline India's terrorism narrative and position Pakistan as a responsible ally. According to intelligence sources, China has consistently resisted acknowledging India's right to defend its sovereignty or to call out Pakistan's terror record, even when presented with hard evidence. China In Pakistan's Trap? The exclusive inputs reveal that China has walked into Pakistan's double game. With a $62 billion investment in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) under threat from rising insurgency in Balochistan, China is now deflecting blame and pushing to internationalise Balochistan as a conflict zone, conveniently avoiding any conversation around Uyghur oppression and its own double standards on terrorism. On the other hand, Pakistan is desperate to avoid scrutiny over its terror infrastructure, especially in the wake of the Pahalgam attack, which drew sharp international attention. Intelligence sources say Islamabad wants to divert the global spotlight from its deepening terror links and India's Operation Sindoor, using SCO as a stage for a diplomatic cover-up. Strategic Disruption, Not Procedural Dissent India's refusal to sign the joint statement wasn't just procedural dissent, it was a strategic disruption, as per sources. The move ensured that Pakistan and China's joint narrative did not go unchallenged or get legitimised by consensus. With this, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has not only stalled a dangerous China-Pakistan diplomatic gambit, but also reinforced India's uncompromising position on terrorism, sovereignty, and regional integrity. The SCO's credibility has taken a hit. Its image as a consensus-driven body has been tarnished, and for the first time, its joint voice has been disrupted — a strong signal that India will not tolerate whitewashing of terrorism, even at multilateral forums. First Published: June 26, 2025, 14:12 IST News india Pakistan-China Game Plan Foiled: Why India Refused To Sign SCO Joint Statement | Exclusive
The Print
16-06-2025
- Business
- The Print
India's decade of vulnerability: Modi must build consensus
Russia will remain in China's suffocating embrace as long as the Ukraine war continues, and the US, under Donald Trump's transactional, sound-byte-led politics, is deeply divided and unlikely to be a reliable friend to anybody, leave alone India. Thanks to a downward spiralling global order, India faces a decade of economic and security vulnerability. The China-Pakistan revisionist front is now a much bigger threat, and Bangladesh could join this anti-India alliance, either covertly or overtly, after the next general elections. India's vulnerabilities One, unlike post-war Europe, Japan, the Asian tigers, and China, which became economic powerhouses with the blessings of the US, India will not have any of that advantage. In fact, both the US and China will do many things to slow down India's growth and rise in global stature. Until we become a $10 trillion economy, and generate lots of quality jobs, we will be both internally and externally under pressure. However, reaching $10 trillion may take us a decade, if not more, even under the best of circumstances. Two, while our defence capabilities are improving and increasingly based on internal capabilities, high-tech war-making machines like the AMCA (advanced medium combat aircraft with stealth capabilities), may take 10 years to develop and deploy, not to speak of warships and nuclear submarines to guard the Indian Ocean Region. And that is an optimistic scenario. But China is accelerating the rearming of Pakistan with stealth fighters—leaving us vulnerable in the short-term. The purpose here is to not just emphasise the challenges, but make a broader point on how they can be overcome by sheer political will: India cannot do this without greater political consensus. Without consensus, the reforms needed to speed up growth and achieve atmanirbharta (self-reliance) in defence will remain stalled, as political parties stay busy spending taxpayer resources on freebies just to get elected. Government and opposition will be working at cross-purposes. Our 0.5 front is not only about secessionist forces, but any debilitating political opposition that could thwart forward movement on reforms. Calling the opposition anti-national serves no useful purpose. Our internal ruptures are not always the result of policy disagreements; they have an intractable edge because of political ego clashes and deep personal animosities. This is epitomised by the deep distrust Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi have for one another, even though they will probably end up doing the same things when in power. Under Modi, there is practically no Congress initiative—direct benefit transfers, Aadhaar, MGNREGA, etc—that the Modi government has not carried forward with minor tweaks. This is unlikely to change much even if the roles were reversed in any future election, though that seems unlikely right now. Also read: Modi vs non-BJP CMs: When most popular isn't all-powerful & why Centre-state ties will worsen How do we build a consensus? As always, the initiative lies with the Modi government, as was amply demonstrated recently when it constituted and dispatched all-party delegations to multiple countries to canvas support for India's stand on terrorism after Operation Sindoor. The only sour note was struck by the Congress party, whose members were a major part of these delegations. The Congress was distinctly uncomfortable with the government's choice of delegates, especially Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor. A simple phone call from the Prime Minister to Rahul Gandhi could have resolved the issue. Instead, the government chose—wisely, in the end—an articulate Tharoor, despite the Congress's objections. India needs reforms and deregulation in many areas, including defence, agriculture, land and labour laws, and in the police-legal-judicial system, which is neither capable of delivering speedy justice nor maintaining law and order without draconian laws. These non-economic reforms are what will enable us to become a $10 trillion economy faster. Even with a political consensus, these reforms will take three to five years to start delivering, and so we need a Prime Minister fully engaged with this effort—not one distracted by short-term political compulsions. The good news is that Modi has ample political capital. The big question is whether he will use it sparingly, more to win elections than to build consensus. For example, whenever all-party meetings are called, he leaves it to his lieutenants to manage, and seldom makes a personal appearance. Trying to stay so far above the battle and not be willing to spend some of his political capital to ensure consensus is not a healthy sign. Most of Modi's policies are broadly in the right direction—barring the rapid expansion of freebie culture—but given India's forthcoming decade of vulnerability, he must consider focusing primarily on meeting those threats, and devolve more power to states and local bodies. Political stalemate India's diplomatic and security challenges are great, and tackling them needs extreme political focus. How can you be building India's defence capabilities and global alliances—which require considerable attention—when you also have to deal with angry farmers landing up on Delhi's doorstep and blocking the roads? Should agriculture not be left fully to states to handle, with the Centre only focused on building national buffer stocks in crucial food grains and critical commodities like petroleum products or rare earths? How can you evolve a sensible strategy to attract manufacturing if you are busy dealing with intractable law and order issues, a dilatory judicial process, and a restive minority population—especially when land and labour laws remain unreformed? How can you manage fiscal and monetary policy effectively if states are constantly cribbing about the lack of resources, and power subsidies and other freebies are draining exchequers? How can you create good jobs if urban areas are so poorly governed, and the infrastructure needed to enable orderly growth is pathetic? The Modi government lost its reform mojo in its second term, even though it had a parliamentary majority. After he was forced by street pressure to reverse three farm laws in 2019 and put the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in abeyance until election time in 2024, the reform agenda took a back seat. The P word—privatisation—has gone missing after Air India was handed over to the Tatas. Forget opposition obstructionism. Can Modi get even his own BJP-ruled states to deregulate, reform and make the changes needed to force competitive reforms in other states? Paradoxically, Modi's political capital may also be hindering reform, for his own partymen may think political survival only needs them to sing Modi's praises instead of doing the hard work on reforms. The opposition also believes that defeating Modi needs excessive spending on freebies. The way out is clear Modi has to use his political capital to push all kinds of reforms forward, in both BJP-ruled states and those governed by the opposition. If that needs the Centre to shed some of its excess powers, so be it. If Governors need to be reined in, jolly good. If delimitation is on the table, Modi must again step up to the plate personally. He cannot leave these jobs entirely to his ministers, who may not have the political heft to swing the deals needed to move India forward. As for China, Modi has the difficult task of both engaging Beijing for equitable trade deals and building up military muscle to deter any adventurism on its part. A tough balancing act, which would be easier if the opposition were not constantly carping about his weakness, including levelling the preposterous allegation that Modi gave in to Donald Trump's pressure during Operation Sindoor, as encapsulated in Rahul Gandhi's 'Narender, Surrender' jibe. In the short post-Pahalgam conflict with Pakistan, China's hand-holding of Islamabad's armaments was unmistakable. PM Modi must ask himself a simple question: what is the use of all my prestige and political capital if it ultimately does not get things done for the country? He has to get his politics right. This means his 56-inch chest must disclose an open heart to win over the opposition in the interests of the country. He can leave the task of winning elections to his second-in-command and state satraps, who must be allowed to grow in stature and do the job he is trying to do when he has other things to worry about. India does not need double-engine sarkars; it needs three engines firing in sync—at the central, state, and local levels—to boost growth. In short: India's decade of vulnerability needs a Prime Minister fully engaged with the threats and challenges it faces—both globally and at home. He cannot afford to be distracted by the need to pander to narrow politics. R Jagannathan is the former editorial director, Swarajya magazine. He tweets @TheJaggi. Views are personal. (Edited by Prashant)
News18
13-06-2025
- Politics
- News18
Operation Sindoor And After: India Must Prepare For A Two-Front War
Last Updated: India should prepare for war not because it is imminent, but because peace must always be secured from a position of strength After Operation Sindoor, it has become abundantly clear that the spectre of a two-front war, where Pakistan and China work in tandem against us, is a reality that cannot be ignored anymore. The collaboration may not be overt, through a joint declaration of war, but the alliance of hostile congruence is undeniable. The idea of a collusive China-Pakistan military front against India is not new. Even before the ink dried on the Simla Agreement of 1972, Pakistan had begun cosying up to China. Their relationship, described over the years as 'higher than the mountains, deeper than the oceans", is not just a diplomatic aphorism. It is a strategic reality that has gained menacing proportions in the last two decades. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship of Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative, snakes through territory India claims as its own—Gilgit-Baltistan. This project is not merely an infrastructure endeavour but a visible assertion of China's strategic intent in India's immediate periphery. Add to this, regular joint military exercises, arms sales, intelligence sharing, and even potential nuclear cooperation, and one begins to grasp the nature of the challenge that confronts us. There are those who argue that war is improbable, if not impossible, in the nuclear age. To them, the logic of mutual deterrence ensures peace. But history has shown that even nuclear-armed nations can engage in limited wars or protracted conflicts below the threshold of nuclear engagement. Kargil in 1999, Galwan in 2020, Uri in 2016, Balakot in 2019, and Operation Sindoor (2025) are reminders of this reality. Moreover, one cannot ignore that China is no longer the aloof continental power it once was. Under Xi Jinping, it has adopted an aggressive, almost imperial posture—whether in the South China Sea, Taiwan Strait, or along the Line of Actual Control with India. Its claims are expansive, its patience limited, and its contempt for the rules-based international order increasingly visible. On the other hand, Pakistan, emboldened by its nuclear arsenal and sustained by a military that acts with near impunity, has found in China not only a patron but also a strategic mentor. The two have aligned not only militarily but ideologically—in their contempt for India's rise and its civilisational model. The time has, therefore, come to actively prepare to deal with this scenario. National security cannot be a matter of episodic attention triggered by the next skirmish on the border or an election season. It requires sustained investment—intellectual, financial, and diplomatic. In other words, we need to put in place a national strategic and defence policy. What could be its possible elements? Expand alliances with like-minded nations. Strategic autonomy does not mean strategic solitude. The ability to balance our interests with Russia and America is particularly important. Both are important sources of defence supplies. Simultaneously, we must strengthen Quad partnerships, further improve ties with ASEAN, and maintain a functional dialogue with China. Equally, we need to accelerate our ongoing defence indigenisation while selectively sourcing cutting-edge technologies from allies. We must also Invest much more in cyber and space defence, where the wars of the future will be shaped before the first bullet is fired. Our efforts to upgrade our border defence infrastructure must be urgently expedited. Finally, we must ensure internal political stability and social harmony. A nation divided within, cannot be united without. While pursuing the above, there is no need for paranoia. We have certain undeniable strengths, and both Pakistan and China have their obvious weaknesses. Pakistan is a nation on the verge of implosion. It is politically unstable—a sham democracy, ostensibly ruled by an unpopular civilian government, but actually run by an army junta that is fast losing credibility. It is also financially bankrupt, running on international doles, most of which goes to pay off old debts. It is internally facing secessionist threats, including unrest in Balochistan and POK. Its most popular leader is languishing in jail, and his party is under shackles. China's economy is lagging, internal resentments over unemployment are growing, and it lacks the safety valve of a democracy. Moreover, under Xi Jinping, its imperialist posture is creating an increasingly cohesive international pushback. Allying with a failed and unstable state like Pakistan could prove to be a proposition with diminishing returns for the Chinese. As against the above, India is a democratic country with close to 1.5 billion people, the fastest growing economy in the globe, and a nuclear power with one of the finest armed forces in the world. It is also one of the world's largest emerging markets, and an entrepreneurial hub. Yet, India must prepare for a two-front war. Not because war is imminent, but because peace must always be secured from a position of strength. For in the end, as Kautilya wrote in the Arthashastra: 'He who is prepared, is the master of his own destiny.' The writer is a former diplomat, an author, and a politician. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: June 13, 2025, 17:16 IST News opinion Opinion | Operation Sindoor And After: India Must Prepare For A Two-Front War
Business Recorder
12-06-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
PCJCCI president expresses satisfaction over Economic Survey, federal budget
LAHORE: Nazir Hussain, President Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI), appreciated the government's launch of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 and Budget 2026, calling them strong indicators of Pakistan's commitment to economic stability, investment, and regional connectivity through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He emphasized that CPEC was playing a transformative role in building infrastructure, boosting trade, and creating job opportunities, especially through key projects in road, port, energy, and urban development. He added that the completion of several major infrastructure projects under CPEC, including the Multan-Sukkur and Hakla-D I Khan motorways, and the operationalization of the New Gwadar International Airport was already improving logistics, reducing travel time, and opening new trade corridors. Brig Mansoor Saeed Sheikh (retd), Senior Vice President PCJCCI particularly praised the progress in Gwadar, where the Gwadar Port and Free Zone have seen over $250 million in investment from the China Overseas Ports Holding Company Limited (COPHCL), enabling operations in logistics, manufacturing, fisheries, and finance. With generous incentives like a 23-year tax holiday, full foreign ownership, and one-window facilitation, Gwadar is rapidly becoming a strategic commercial hub for the region. Zafar Iqbal, Vice President PCJCCI said that Budget 2026 had also allocated significant funding under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for ongoing and new CPEC projects, including infrastructure development in Gwadar, land acquisition, and the second phase of the East Bay Expressway. He also highlighted achievements in social infrastructure, such as the completion of a 1.2 million-gallon-per-day desalination plant to address water scarcity in Gwadar, and progress in digital connectivity, including the completion of a cross-border optical fibre cable. Salahuddin Hanif, Secretary General further welcomed signs of macroeconomic stabilization, with inflation recorded at 4.6 percent and GDP growth at 2.7 percent in the outgoing fiscal year. These are positive signs for investor confidence. Chinese businesses are already showing renewed interest, and CPEC's next phase will focus on job creation, industrial development, and local empowerment. The PCJCCI reaffirmed its commitment to promoting bilateral trade, facilitating business partnerships, and supporting the government's development goals under CPEC and Budget 2026. 'CPEC is not just an economic corridor it's a symbol of long-term cooperation and shared prosperity. The foundation has been laid. Now it's time to build on it, together.' Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
