China strongly condemns Balochistan attacks, says will continue to back Pakistan's counter-terror ops

China on Tuesday strongly condemned the terrorist attacks in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province in which 37 people were massacred and said it would continue to back Islamabad’s counter-terrorism operations.

Condemning the attack by Baloch gunmen, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a daily press briefing that China firmly opposes all forms of terrorism and will continue to firmly support Pakistan in advancing counter-terrorism operations, maintaining social unity and stability and protecting people’s safety.

China is willing to further strengthen counter-terrorism and security cooperation with Pakistan to jointly safeguard regional peace and security, Lin said.

The two attacks in Balochistan took place as a top Chinese military official is visiting Pakistan for security assessment, especially for the security of the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The multi-project Corridor is being opposed by the Baloch militants and is under recurring attack, including on Chinese personnel working on various projects in Pakistan.

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Heavily armed Baloch gunmen killed at least 37 people in separate attacks in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province on Monday, as insurgent attacks spiked in the region bordering Afghanistan.

In the first incident, at least 23 people from Pakistan’s Punjab province were killed in a targeted attack in Balochistan’s Musakhel district after gunmen offloaded them from buses and checked their identities.

In another incident, 11 people, including six security personnel, were killed in Kalat, 150 km south of Quetta in Balochistan.

Meanwhile, the Commander of the Ground Forces of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China General Li Qiaoming called on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday.

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Sharif underscored that Pakistan and China are all-weather Strategic Cooperative Partners and trusted friends, Pakistan’s state-run news agency Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) said.

Sharif said that the defence and strategic ties between Pakistan and China are vital for peace and stability in the region.

General Li, in his remarks, affirmed that China, “as an iron brother, strategic partner, and reliable friend,” places the highest priority on its relationship with Pakistan and expressed China’s desire to elevate their bilateral friendship to new levels of cooperation and collaboration.

Recognising the role of Pakistan’s armed forces in promoting regional peace and stability and combating terrorism, General Li reiterated the PLA’s commitment to further expanding its cooperation with Pakistan to enhance the capacity building of the two armed forces, the APP reported.

The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistan’s Balochistan with China’s Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The BRI is seen as an attempt by China to further its influence abroad with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments across the world.

However, the implementation of various projects has slowed in recent months following terror attacks on Chinese personnel working on the ventures such as the one in March in which five Chinese and one Pakistani national were killed in a terrorist attack on their vehicle of the Dasu Hydropower Project undertaken by a Chinese company in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province.