Pakistanis Perceive China as Their ‘Best Friend’ – The Diplomat

For years, the leaders of China and Pakistan have eulogized the connection between the 2 nations as “increased than the mountains, deeper than the oceans, sweeter than honey.” Then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif promoted the China-Pakistan Financial Hall (CPEC) – an infrastructure funding megaproject in Pakistan financed by China since 2015 – as a “sport changer.” Now there may be agency proof within the type of survey information that such phrases are extra than simply rhetoric – not less than so far as the residents of Pakistan are involved.

As a part of the Sinophone Borderlands public opinion survey in Pakistan in June 2022, over 1,200 Pakistani respondents have been requested two open-ended questions on their notion of China. Respondents have been drawn from all areas of Pakistan and included a consultant pattern of age teams and genders. The identical questions have additionally been requested in lots of different nations and really hardly ever have the solutions been as considerably constructive as in Pakistan.

The primary survey query requested what first got here to folks’s minds when pondering of China. The commonest solutions, because the phrase cloud reveals, have been “good friend,” “greatest good friend,” “good good friend,” and even “trusted good friend.” Chinese language folks have been perceived as pleasant and hardworking. The nation itself was seen as being robust, and developed, with many respondents labeling it a superpower. Additionally, China was seen as useful and supportive of Pakistan. The connection between the 2 nations was described as a “brotherhood” and many individuals celebrated it by saying “lengthy stay Pak-China friendship.”

A phrase cloud exhibiting what first involves thoughts when Pakistanis take into consideration China.

The second query requested whether or not folks’s normal view of China bought higher or worse throughout the earlier three years and why. An amazing majority of the Pakistani respondents (85 %) gave a constructive reply. Solely 9 % indicated a worsening of their notion, and 6 % stayed impartial. Those that indicated seeing China in a worse mild than earlier than recognized causes like COVID-19, China working just for its personal profit, and China’s remedy of Muslims (this was the most typical reply among the many detrimental solutions). Individuals whose notion bought higher centered totally on China’s assist to Pakistan within the type of CPEC, Chinese language funding, and even China’s COVID-19 assist.

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The outcomes immediate an vital query: Why are the attitudes of Pakistanis so overwhelmingly constructive towards China, and why a lot extra so than in different nations? The reply is that their constructive attitudes are linked to China’s long-term assist for Pakistan, particularly by CPEC, and Pakistan’s in any other case relatively remoted place in South Asia, the place it lacks different agency allies.

Specifically, the constructive angle correlates with Chinese language investments flowing into the nation beneath the label of CPEC, which was incessantly talked about by the respondents. Though the CPEC funding program has progressed extra slowly than anticipated, particularly with regard to the event of Gwadar port in Balochistan province, there have been notable successes. Transport and power infrastructure, so badly wanted in Pakistan, have been constructed. New energy vegetation have added power to Pakistan’s energy grid. Roads and railways are being constructed. The ML-1 connection linking Karachi with the northern metropolis of Peshawar is probably the most important challenge beneath building by Chinese language corporations. ML-1 is using an estimated 24,000 employees and can finally price round $6.8 billion. Nevertheless, extra work must be completed, particularly with regard to power, since Pakistan remains to be susceptible to blackouts.

However, what drives China’s reputation among the many residents of Pakistan is that China is admittedly Pakistan’s one and solely stalwart ally. It’s the solely nation that’s at the moment prepared to put money into Pakistan on a big scale. India is a mutual enemy, whereas the USA has clearly given up on Pakistan for the reason that withdrawal from Afghanistan. The U.S. can be China’s geopolitical rival. So far as different attainable candidates for assist are involved, Russia is supplying arms to India, and Pakistan has combined relations with its different neighbors similar to Iran and Afghanistan. In the meantime, although there are issues with the CPEC megaproject, it’s the solely sport on the town. China additionally continues to produce Pakistan’s army with the vast majority of its arms imports.

On the identical time, even within the face of overwhelming standard assist, it’s essential to be pragmatic in regards to the progress of Chinese language investments and to not exaggerate what will be achieved. For example, in mid-2022 the non-repayment of loans induced Chinese language energy corporations to show off power provides, contributing to blackouts. Locals in Gwadar haven’t purchased into the advantages of the Chinese language-constructed port, resulting in protests and slowing down the implementation of the challenge. The notion that CPEC could be a “sport changer” remains to be removed from realization since Chinese language investments alone are inadequate to rework Pakistan’s troubled economic system.

It’s definitely encouraging for the expansion of China-Pakistan relations that folks in Pakistan are so constructive about their Chinese language ally. Nonetheless, having a very good picture shouldn’t be enough by itself to enact the financial transformation of a less-developed associate, significantly one with cashflow issues. Unrealistic expectations of cooperation are solely more likely to result in disappointment in the long term.

It must also be remembered that what actually binds China and Pakistan collectively is their mutual distrust of India, with whom each have border disputes within the Kashmir area. On this case, given the historical past of battle between China and Pakistan on one aspect and India on the opposite, the ties that bind are as a lot geopolitical as geoeconomic. The comparatively gradual implementation of Chinese language infrastructure funding initiatives in Pakistan bears witness to the truth that safety cooperation, with Chinese language arms propping up Pakistan’s army, is as a lot of a precedence as financial transformation. Certainly, it’s possible that the previous is extra important than the latter – not less than, so far as the perennially pressured leaders of the 2 nations, each of which additionally should include inside separatism, are involved.