CPEC

Subject: International agreements

Context: Pakistan says it seeks to strengthen trade ties with the Sri Lanka through CPEC.

Concept:

The CPEC is part of China’s larger regional transnational ‘One Belt One Road’ (OBOR) initiative, whose two arms are the land-based New Silk Road and the 21st century Maritime Silk Road, using which Beijing aims to create a Silk Road Economic Belt sprawled over a large patch of Asia and eastern Europe, and crisscrossed by a web of transport, energy supply and telecommunications lines.
The agreement between two countries for connectivity projects amounted to around investments of 46 Billion dollar.
It consists of clutch of major infrastructure works currently under way in Pakistan, intended to link Kashgar in China’s Xinjiang province to Gwadar deep sea port close to Pakistan’s border with Iran.
It aims to transform Pakistan’s economy—by modernizing its road, rail, air, and energy transportation systems—and to give China a shorter and faster land route to avoid its Malacca dilemma and reach out to Central Asia and Europe through land route.

India’s concern with CPEC:

Its principal objection was that CPEC passed through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
It violates India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Strategic advantage to China by giving a foothold to China in Western Indian Ocean.
Part of the strategy of China of encircling India through “String of Pearls”.
Kashmir dilemma: The route of CPEC passes through POK and makes China an indirect stakeholder in Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan.