Reliance on China's surveillance architecture could compromise Pakistan's sovereignty, digital future
New Delhi, June 11
China‑Pakistan Economic Corridor has entered a new phase -- dubbed "CPEC 2.0" -- that prioritises artificial intelligence, cloud computing and surveillance technologies over the heavy infrastructure projects that defined the first decade of cooperation, a new report has said.
The report from Asia Times said Beijing's push to export AI architectures and "Safe City" surveillance systems to Pakistan is reshaping the partnership from physical connectivity to digital governance.
Driven by Chinese AI-powered facial recognition, automated license plate readers and predictive policing algorithms, the 'Safe City' networks are publicly framed as modernisation efforts to tackle urban crime and persistent militant threats.
However, the system provides an efficient mechanism for state control for Islamabad, and for Beijing, it is an invaluable source of real-world operational data, the report noted. Further, Pakistan's nascent IT and software export sector will also be a causality of this new co-operation.
Chinese firms are supplying hardware, software and cloud services at subsidised rates and they are faster to deploy, but it creates long‑term technological dependence, the report warned.
The technological dependence will make future diversification away from Chinese platforms difficult and expensive.
"If data is the primary commodity of the modern economy, Pakistan is rapidly surrendering the drilling rights of its domestic digital landscape to a singular external power," the media house said.
Such digital and technological dependence could compromise sovereignty in a geopolitical crisis, and could dictate "who holds the encryption keys to the state's digital nervous system."
Pakistan got attracted to Chinese technological solutions due to constrained public finances and the urgent need to rapidly modernise urban governance and internal security.
Pakistan's IT industry relies heavily on Western markets for revenue, and tighter data‑security regulations and supply‑chain scrutiny in the United States could penalise Pakistani firms that become deeply integrated with Chinese architectures.
"Islamabad risks locking out its most dynamic economic sector from lucrative Western tech ecosystems in exchange for subsidized sovereign tech infrastructure from Beijing," the report noted.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As an Australian watching South Asia, this is concerning. China's digital dominance is a global issue, and Pakistan is risking its sovereignty for short-term security. The "Safe City" systems sound like a backdoor for Beijing to monitor Pakistani citizens. Not a good trade-off.
Haanji, exactly what we feared. Pakistan's IT sector could have been a bright spot, but now it's tied to Chinese tech that won't integrate with Western systems. And the US is tightening data regulations—this will hit their freelancers and IT exports hard. Sovereignty is a luxury they are trading for cheap surveillance tech.
It's not just Pakistan—many countries are falling for this. But as a Canadian, I see the parallels: cheap infrastructure now, but you pay with data sovereignty later. The article rightly points out the encryption keys issue. Once China controls that, it's game over for any independent digital future.
"If data is the primary commodity, Pakistan is surrendering drilling rights." Excellent line. But let's be honest, Pakistan's elite probably don't care as long as they get their cut. The common citizen will pay the price when China pulls the plug during a crisis. India needs to build its own digital ecosystem and offer it to neighbours as an alternative. Make in India for digital sovereignty.
Interesting but also a bit hypocritical coming from Asia Times. India itself uses some Chinese tech, though we've been reducing dependency. That said, Pakistan is going all-in. CPEC 2.0 is a digital trap. The West should offer alternative financing for their
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