A sense of unease has crept into China-Pakistan relations in recent months. As Islamabad and Washington have drawn closer, Beijing has grown concerned about the potential strategic implications of their rapprochement. Nevertheless, instead of panicking, China has reacted with restraint and has not altered its Pakistan policy.
The rapprochement and its background
After years of stagnation following the US pullout from Afghanistan in 2021, US-Pakistan relations experienced an abrupt and significant improvement when President Trump involved Washington in the politics of the four-day conflict between India and Pakistan in May this year. Trump, who claimed to have played a decisive role in ending the conflict, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Islamabad and soon proposed mediating the Kashmir dispute, a longstanding Pakistani demand. Pakistan also mounted a successful charm offensive in Washington, leading to an unprecedented White House lunch for Field Marshal Asim Munir and agreements on cryptocurrency, critical minerals, trade, counterterrorism, and oil exploration. In October, Islamabad reportedly proposed that the US build and operate a port at Pasni, on Pakistan’s Indian Ocean coast, and use it to transport rare earths mined in Pakistan.