China seeks ‘new avenues’ of military cooperation with Pakistan. On Monday, China’s defense minister urged Pakistan’s navy chief that their armies, especially their ships, should “expand into new fields of cooperation” to strengthen regional security.
Their navy and air forces have exercised together for years.
If the Strait of Malacca is blocked, China needs Pakistan and its Arabian Sea access.
After opening its first overseas military facility in Djibouti on the northern Indian Ocean in 2017, Chinese activity in the region has raised concerns, notably in India.
China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu told Pakistan’s Chief of Naval Staff Amjad Khan Niazi, who was visiting Beijing that military relationships were important.
“The two militaries should expand into new areas of exchanges, create new high points of cooperation to continuously enhance their ability to deal with all sorts of risks and challenges, and jointly maintain the security interests of the two countries and the region,” Li said in a statement on China’s Ministry of National Defense website.
In late April, Zhang Youxia, deputy chairman of China’s Central Military Commission, stated the Chinese military was eager to enhance and extend cooperation with Pakistan’s military. Niazi’s visit follows.
China has not said if it requested military access to Gwadar, Pakistan’s Chinese-funded deepwater port.
The Pentagon earlier suggested Gwadar as a Chinese military facility in Pakistan. That would raise New Delhi’s concerns about its neighborhood’s Chinese military partnerships and assets.
A Chinese survey ship’s visit to Sri Lanka’s critical port in 2022 alarmed New Delhi. A Chinese submarine and cruiser docked in Colombo in 2014, angering India.
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