Beijing, Sep 7: Pakistani Foreign Minister Mohammed Asif will be visiting Beijing+ on Thursday to discuss the “fallout of the BRICS declaration, which condemned two Pakistan based terrorist groups known for their bloody attacks on India.”
China wants to assess what kind of action it can take to begin implementing the BRICS declaration which condemned the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad without hurting its $50 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor, sources said. Pakistan has rejected the BRICS declaration, and Asif is expected to complain about its close ally, China, joining hands with other BRICS countries+ in taking the decision.
Beijing has been sore with Pakistan because it has not been able to crush the top leadership of East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), which is the main cause of terrorism in China’s western Xinjiang region bordering Pakistan. The BRICS declaration also covered ETIM along with other terror groups, which include Taliban, ISIS, al- Qaida and its affiliates, and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, the Haqqani network, LeT, JeM, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Hizb ut-Tahrir.
“There are many ETIM leaders in Pakistan. They are from Xinjiang but settled in the tribal areas of Pakistan. China is not happy with the fact that they continue to operate from Pakistan,” Ahmad Bilal Khalil, researcher at the Center for Strategic and Regional Studies, told TOI.
The presence of ETIM leaders, who are tormenting Pakistan’s close ally, China, contradicts Islamabad’s claim that there are no safe heaven for terrorists in the country.
The two sides (China and Pakistan) will exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of mutual interest,” Chinese ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said.
Analysts said a section of the Pakistani political and military establishments are also keen on suppressing Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad. “But they find it politically difficult to act against their leaders because they are capable of using religious fanaticism to marshal support from thousands of supporters.”
Source Times Of India
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