Chinese dual-use cargo heading to Pakistan seized

Chinese dual-use cargo heading to Pakistan seized

Subject: Science and tech

Section: Defence

Context:

• Indian security agencies have intercepted a Pakistan-bound ship from China at Mumbai’s Nhava Sheva port, suspected to be carrying a ‘dual-use consignment’ for Islamabad’s nuclear and ballistic missile programme.

More on news:

• During its voyage, the vessel reached Nhava Sheva Port (JNPT) Mumbai on January 22, 2024 and the consignment was seized by Indian customs officials based on intelligence inputs on possible proliferation concerns by Pakistan and China.
• The same was intercepted at Nhava Sheva Port on March 12, 2022, under the policy to prevent proliferation activities through Indian ports.

Customs watchlist

• China was attempting to supply an autoclave to Pakistan under the cover of an ‘industrial dryer’, which was seized from a Hong Kong-flagged Chinese ship named Dai Cui Yun which left Jiangyin port on the Yangtze river in China’s Jiangsu province, and was headed to Pakistan’s Port Qasim.
• The autoclave, which was mis-declared as an ‘industrial dryer’, is notified in the SCOMET (Special Chemicals, Organisms, Materials, Equipment and Technologies) list and was found concealed in the bottom of the cargo of the ship, as it transited through Gujarat’s Kandla port.

U.S. sanctions

• In June 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) sanctioned three Chinese companies i.e. General Technology Limited (which had supplied the autoclave), Beijing Luo Luo Technology Development, and Changzhou Utek Composite — for their involvement in supplying missile-related items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile programme.
• These sanctions were imposed as part of the global non-proliferation regime.
• China has also been assisting Pakistan in the construction of civil nuclear power plants, including four 300 MWe nuclear power plants at Chashma, and two 1,000 MWe plants in Karachi.

What are  Dual Use Goods?

Dual-use goods are items that can be used both for civilian and military applications. These types of goods are heavily regulated because they can be classified for civilian use and then transformed for military purposes, or worse, used for terrorism.