[Daily Caller] China seeks global domination.
The vehicle to achieve it is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a collection of infrastructure projects and a network of commercial agreements designed to link the entire world directly to the Chinese economy through inter-connected land-based and maritime routes. The guarantor of that soft power approach is the hard power of military expansion.
Beijing’s ambitions cannot be realized, starting with supremacy in South Asia, if its largest single BRI investment, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), fails.
There are certain preconditions for the success of CPEC: (1) the removal of U.S. and NATO military forces from Afghanistan; (2) a reduction of American and Indian influence in South Asia; (3) the curtailment of Islamic extremism and ethnic separatism; and (4) a decrease in regional tensions due to national rivalries; all to be obtained under the stewardship of China, a "Pax Sinica."
Critical among China’s efforts is the successful wooing of Iran and its proper placement within the framework of CPEC. Given the inherent competition and sometimes enmity in the region, China has been obliged to navigate a diplomatic minefield cautiously, combining direct support for Iran with what appear to be calculated, yet sometimes convoluted attempts to leverage the current U.S.- Iranian conflict to its regional advantage.
On October 29th, Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Yao Jing stated, "China is interested in the partnership of the friendly states and neighbors of Pakistan, specially Iran, in the CPEC project." |