Pakistan and the ‘alliance maze’
Since 1950, when Pakistan recognised China, ties between Islamabad and Beijing have steadily grown and now involve multiple strategic objectives. The economic ties between the two have continued to expand, and China has been one of most reliable and consistent exporters of military hardware to Pakistan. The two have cooperated in the nuclear field as well as in missilery. In fact, one of the reasons cited by India to justify its May 1998 nuclear tests at Pokhran was to offset the Sino-Pakistani strategic combination.
In the shifting landscape of global strategic alliances, the Pakistan-China relationship has become even more pivotal as a counter to opposing hubs of power, the most important being the emerging Indo-US strategic partnership. Both Islamabad and Beijing have a stake in curtailing the outreach of this combination of power, and China is today actively engaged in using its relationship with Pakistan to enhance its influence in the Persian Gulf as well as Central Asia.