Pakistan hosted Chinese officials in July for a signing ceremony for a  Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries.

Pakistan, a close ally of the West during the Cold War and the war against terrorism, became closer to China after the withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan. What does Pakistan's re-inclination towards the West mean for China?

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Strategic Partner

South Asian country Pakistan's relations with Washington have not been as cordial as before the withdrawal of NATO troops from the Hindu-Kush state of Afghanistan, forcing Islamabad to turn its attention to regional partner China. However, developments for strategic partner China over the past months or years indicate that Pakistan is re-aligning with the West, leading analysts to wonder whether could such a change affect or harm Chinese interests in the region.

Pakistan-China Relations

The rise of Pakistan-China relations was seen from 2014 to 2018, the main reason for which was the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and some other development projects, which are believed to be among these projects. The Beijing government had invested more than $25 billion. From 2018 to 2022, allegations of corruption in CPEC projects by former Prime Minister Imran Khan's cabinet ministers had a negative impact on Pakistan-China relations and Beijing became angry with Islamabad.

Is there a realignment between Pakistan and the Western powers?

Pakistan has been very close to the West in the past and Islamabad joined at least two pro-Western military agreements. Especially during the Afghan Jihad period, but after the Jihad, the US largely abandoned Pakistan, and many restrictions were imposed on this South Asian country. During the US invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11, Pakistan once again became a Western ally against the Afghan Taliban and acquired the status of a so-called "non-NATO ally". But after the withdrawal of Western forces, he was left alone to fight the political and social turmoil, including chaos and unrest, in the war-torn country of Afghanistan. All this chaos was created by the occupying forces.

Gwadar and Gilgit-Baltistan

In this period of very difficult situation for Pakistan, China announced massive investment projects for Pakistan, but many analysts in Pakistan believe that Pakistan is allying with the West, which is Islamabad and Beijing. will not have a positive impact on mutual relations. International affairs expert Dr. Talat A. Ministry said that the recent visits of US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Bloom to Gwadar and Gilgit-Baltistan clearly show that Washington wants to monitor the places where China has strategic interests. He said, "This will create mistrust between China and Pakistan, which may be good for Washington but not for Islamabad and Beijing."

American Expert on South Asian Affairs

Michael Kugelman, an American expert on South Asian affairs, believes that public messages from Pakistani officials in recent months, emphasizing Islamabad's partnership with the United States, indicate that Pakistan is fully committed Generally, there is a lack of desire to join the Chinese camp. Dr. Naseer Dashti, an expert from the Pakistani province of Balochistan, says that Pakistan has always been close to the West and is now once again returning to its former allies. Speaking to DW, he said, "Beijing is trapped by investing billions of dollars in this South Asian country because it has invested billions of dollars in this country and it wants Pakistan to return to Western countries." Can't force a retreat."

Why lean back to the West?

With sluggish economic growth, a fiscal deficit, and an external debt of more than $124 billion, Pakistan is heavily dependent on international financial institutions to secure loans from institutions believed to be the US. And under the influence of its Western allies. Prominent writer and political commentator Ayesha Siddiqa believes that economic factors forced Islamabad to move closer to the West again. He told DW that the US has a lot of influence over these financial institutions, which can help Pakistan with bailout packages. He further said that such assistance is possible only if relations between Islamabad and Washington are cordial.

Political Analyst

Renowned political analyst and retired general Talat Masood says that Beijing helped Pakistan at a time when other powers were reluctant to invest in Pakistan. Talking to DW, he said that America itself created this vacuum by leaving Pakistan after the Afghan war. He further said that China itself went ahead and fulfilled Pakistan's arms and other needs. However, Talat Masood had to say, "Thus, Pakistan came closer to China, but at the same time, it also felt that relations with the West, especially the United States, should be very pleasant."

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