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Attacks on Chinese targets in Pakistan ‘unlikely to derail close economic ties’
- In the latest incident, a convoy of Chinese workers was attacked on the way to Gwadar Port in Balochistan and two attackers died in a shoot-out
- Both countries have been working to improve security following a string of deadly attacks carried out by the Balochistan Liberation Army
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Attacks on Chinese workers in Pakistan are not expected to have a major impact on the economic cooperation between the two countries, analysts said following the latest attack.
A convoy of 23 Chinese engineers in four bulletproof vehicles was attacked by insurgents on their way to the Gwadar Port in Balochistan on Sunday, the Chinese consulate in Karachi said.
The Balochistan Liberation Army, a separatist insurgent group, later claimed responsibility.
“Attacks like this, along with other security incidents, will have a certain impact on the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, especially for individual investors … [when it comes to] risk assessment,” said Zhu Yongbiao, professor at Lanzhou University’s school of politics and international relations.
But he said the impact would be limited as both China and Pakistan had taken such security threats into account in the beginning and protection for Chinese workers had improved in the past two years following a series of deadly attacks.
“[These protection efforts] include sending troops to protect Chinese personnel, facilities, enterprises … and detecting a considerable number of attempted terrorist attacks in advance,” he said.
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