Islamabad: China has proposed to make its own arrangements for the security of its citizens working in Pakistan.
According to a report by foreign news agency Reuters, sources said that in the talks between the two countries after the car bomb blast in Karachi, China has urged Pakistan to allow it to make its own security arrangements for its citizens working here.
According to the news agency report, five Pakistani military and government sources who are aware of the talks between China and Pakistan and who asked not to be identified because the talks are a sensitive matter said that written proposals sent by Beijing to Islamabad were reviewed.
A Pakistani official who was part of the recent talks said that the Chinese want to bring their security here and Pakistan has not yet agreed to any such move.
The report said that the written proposals sent from Beijing were sent to the security agencies for review, which highlighted a clause that suggested allowing exchanges of security agencies and forces from each other to cooperate in counter-terrorism and joint operations.
The official said that the departure of the forces would be after negotiations, but Pakistani institutions were opposed to the proposal.
It should be noted that neither the Beijing or Islamabad governments have confirmed any such talks.
However, the sources and two other officials said that there was agreement on the formation of a joint security management system and that Pakistan had confidence in the Chinese officials involved in the security meetings and coordination.
Despite the agreement in this regard, there was no agreement between the two sides on the practical participation in the security arrangements.
An official said that Pakistan had earlier asked China to help improve intelligence and surveillance capabilities rather than directly intervene.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said regarding the talks that he was not aware of any such development that a joint security plan was under consideration, but he said that China would continue its efforts to strengthen its cooperation with Pakistan and work together to maintain the security of Chinese citizens, projects and institutions.
On the other hand, Pakistani ministries and relevant agencies also did not respond to reports of the talks despite contacts.
Earlier last week, Pakistan’s Interior Ministry had said in a statement that the two sides had agreed to adopt a joint strategy to avoid such incidents in the future.
China, Pakistan’s long-time friend, has invested $65 billion in development projects in Pakistan under President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (BPEC), which is under construction and thousands of Chinese experts are working on it.
The news agency report claimed that China often supports Pakistan’s security arrangements, although it sometimes demands improvements but expresses its anger internally.
Citing three sources, it added that in a recent meeting, China provided evidence that Pakistan had failed to follow security protocols agreed upon twice in recent months.
Under these protocols, the highest level of security is provided during the movement of Chinese officials, and Pakistan has allocated a special force called the Special Protection Unit to protect Chinese citizens.
The Chinese embassy and consulates in Islamabad are allowed to have Chinese security personnel, the Pakistani official said.
It should be noted that two Chinese nationals were killed in a suicide car bomb attack near the airport in Karachi last month, who were working on a project and had returned after a week-long holiday in Thailand.
Later, there was an impression of differences between the two countries, however, top officials including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited the Chinese embassy in Islamabad to offer condolences and assured of robust security measures.
On the other hand, China also said in a statement that it rejects the propaganda regarding ongoing projects with Pakistan and will continue to cooperate for security.
