Related:
Pakistan Is A Nuclear Rogue State, Part 1: The 1999 Kargil War
Pakistan Is A Nuclear Rogue State, Part 4: The End of Appeasement
Pakistan Is A Nuclear Rogue State, Part 5: The Dangers of Disengagement
As ties between Washington and Islamabad continue to deteriorate in the aftermath of the Taliban's takeover in Afghanistan, Pakistan’s military establishment is cementing its alliance with a rising China.
Just like the United States, China will use Pakistan for its benefit and then discard it when it is no longer needed.
So far in its short history Pakistan has proven to be an unstable and short-sighted nation that depends on foreign superpowers for its relevance and even survival.
Pakistan is not wise enough to make peace with India and not strong enough to win a war. So it uses terrorism, victimization, and nuclear blackmail to pursue its aims. But none of these tools will work.
Sooner or later, Pakistan will have to realize that it is the weaker party in its confrontation with India and put aside its delusions for good.
II.
An excerpt from, "Have India’s actions fuelled closer China-Pakistan ties?" By Kunal Purohit, South China Morning Post, February 11, 2022:
In the recent past, India has been troubled by drones, reportedly flown from Pakistan into Indian airspace often dropping off weapons, explosives and drugs. Last month, the Pakistani Navy also inducted the Chinese-developed PNS Tughril, a frigate that Chinese state-owned newspaper Global Times described as “the largest and the most advanced surface combat vessel China has ever exported”. China is also constructing eight Hangor-class submarines and medium-altitude armed drones for Pakistan, it said.
There have also been reports that China could offer Pakistan hypersonic weapons in order to counter India’s induction of the Russian S-400 air defence system.
During the ongoing border stand-off between India and China along the Line of Actual Control, Pakistan-based Twitter handles posing as Chinese nationals have peddled anti-India propaganda. These Twitter handles have regularly peddled misleading reports related to the violent clash at Galwan Valley in June 2020, as well as about India’s military preparedness. China and Pakistan are also potentially exploring establishing an international news media outlet that will significantly advance their propaganda efforts. Besides, in 2018, both had reportedly joined hands to honey trap Indian Army officers into revealing information regarding troop deployments along the borders with China and Pakistan.The Chinese side has taken the lead by providing the technology and content, while Pakistan acts as the implementer and disseminator. This collaboration is symbiotic: China needs Pakistan because mainstream social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are banned in China, and command over the English and Hindi languages is very limited in most parts of China’s populace. Moreover, by not directly getting involved and making Pakistan the front end of the anti-India activity, China is able to skirt attribution. For Pakistan, collaborating with China strengthens its strategic partnership and lends the technical edge, which Islamabad’s cyber activities wouldn’t have been able to achieve otherwise.
For Khan and the Pakistani military, China’s view on the issue of Kashmir and its sovereignty were perhaps among the key gains. More importantly, with both countries explicitly supporting each other on core issues, Pakistan has openly declared that it has chosen China over the U.S. as far as the alignment of Pakistan’s interests and regional security and economic policy is concerned.. . .On the military front, the two sides will be expanding military-to-military contacts and cooperation. Pakistan’s military is known to have maintained closer contact with the U.S. military. Historically, a majority of the training engagements of Pakistani officers have taken place in the United States and other Western countries. However, Pakistan’s close cooperation with China and deteriorating ties with the U.S. means that Pakistan’s military training and contacts with Beijing are set to grow as well in the coming months and years.
