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China's Pakistan Investments at Risk Amid Security Failures, Jihadist Threats

The security of Chinese investments in Pakistan, including flagship CPEC projects, is under severe strain due to repeated militant attacks targeting personnel. A report highlights that jihadist and separatist groups, including ISIS-K, have expanded their reach to urban centers and critical infrastructure. These incidents have prompted Beijing to move beyond rhetoric and insist on concrete security enforcement from Islamabad. The situation is forcing a silent renegotiation of the partnership, testing its endurance beyond ideological affinity.

Key Points: China-Pakistan Security Crisis Threatens CPEC Investments

  • CPEC security under threat
  • Militant attacks target Chinese personnel
  • ISIS-K expands reach in Pakistan
  • Beijing demands stricter security measures
  • Partnership credibility questioned
3 min read

Chinese investments in Pakistan at risk amid repeated security failures: Report

Repeated militant attacks on Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan strain the strategic partnership and question Islamabad's security guarantees.

"Pakistan remains a crucial partner, but under increasingly stringent performance conditions. - Dimitra Staikou"

Beijing/Islamabad, Jan 27 Neither the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, nor the rhetoric of "brotherhood" can ensure the security of Chinese investments in the region as long as Pakistan continues to serve as a hub for jihadist and separatist organisations.

If Beijing turns a blind eye to the historical precedent, it risks facing severe consequences, not through deployed troops but dead citizens, stalled projects and a fracturing global image, a report said on Tuesday.

Writing for 'EuropaWire', Dimitra Staikou, a Greek lawyer, writer and journalist, stated that China has moved beyond mere generic assurances of "stability", insisting on concrete enforcement capabilities on the ground.

"The creation of special units and joint training frameworks signals a silent renegotiation of power: Pakistan remains a crucial partner, but under increasingly stringent performance conditions. When a strategic ally is forced to restructure its internal security architecture to reassure a partner, cooperation has moved from ideological affinity to a stress test of endurance," Staikou stated.

She highlighted that a series of militant attacks in Pakistan between 2024 and 2025 has severely undermined the security of Chinese citizens and joint projects.

"In March 2024, a suicide bombing in Shangla killed five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver while en route to the Dasu hydropower project, one of CPEC's flagship initiatives. In October 2024, an attack near Karachi's international airport killed two Chinese workers, while earlier operations by the Baloch Liberation Army had already targetted Chinese interests in Balochistan. Repeated attacks by jihadist and separatist groups have become a source of growing tension, prompting Beijing to publicly demand stricter and more effective security measures," Staikou detailed.

"As a result, while cooperation remains officially strong, realities on the ground increasingly call into question Pakistan's capacity to guarantee the safety of Chinese projects and personnel, directly affecting the credibility of the partnership itself," she further added.

According to the report, the presence and operational capability of the terrorist group ISIS-K in Pakistan during 2025 revealed that the threat had grown beyond the limits of state management and surveillance.

Despite Islamabad's official pledges of "counterterrorism control", it said, ISIS-K expanded both geographically and operationally, "with attacks, recruitment, and networking no longer confined to remote border areas but reaching urban centres, cross-border flows, and critical infrastructure".

The attacks on Chinese citizens in South Asia, the report said, are no longer isolated incidents "but part of a broader terrorist logic cutting across organisations and geographies, with Pakistan at the core of this dangerous convergence."

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priyanka N
The report is spot on. You can't build an economic corridor on a foundation of sand. The security of personnel is paramount. China's investments are at huge risk, and it seems the "all-weather friendship" is being tested by harsh weather indeed.
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Aman W
From an Indian perspective, we've seen this movie before. The terror infrastructure nurtured for strategic purposes has a way of biting back. It's a cautionary tale for any nation investing there without demanding genuine, verifiable action against all terror groups.
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Sarah B
While the security failures are concerning, I hope the focus remains on the tragic loss of life—the engineers and workers. Their safety should be the top priority for both governments. The geopolitical angle is important, but let's not forget the human cost.
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Vikram M
CPEC was always a strategic project with huge loans for Pakistan. If security fails, the entire debt-heavy model collapses. This could have significant ripple effects on Pakistan's already fragile economy. China might start recalculating the costs versus benefits.
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Karan T
The Baloch Liberation Army targeting Chinese interests is a complex internal issue for Pakistan. It shows that development projects forced without addressing local grievances can backfire. Stability needs more than just military solutions.

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