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By Wang Zhaokun Pakistan announced Saturday that China has agreed to its request to take over operations at a major port, while hoping that Beijing can also help build a naval base there, according to media reports. "The Chinese government has acceded to Pakistan's request to take over operations at Gwadar port as soon as the terms of agreement with the Singapore Port Authority (SPA) expire," Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) quoted Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar as saying in a statement. According to APP, Mukhtar said Pakistan appreciated that the Chinese government agrees to run the port, but would be more grateful "if a naval base is constructed at the site of Gwadar for Pakistan." The statement by Pakistan's defense chief was made after his visit to China with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. During Gilani's visit, Pakistan also requested frigates of 4,400 tons on a credit basis and asked the Chinese government to train Pakistani personnel in submarine operations, APP said. However, the defense minister did not mention when China will take over operations at Gwadar port. Gwadar port, 333 kilometersfrom the exit of the Straits of Hormuz, is the third deep-sea port of Pakistan following Karachi port and Bin Qasim port. Gwadar has been run as a commercial port under the current deal between Pakistan and SPA, so China's possible takeover is merely a business activity based on market rules, Zhao Gancheng, director of South Asia Studies at the Shanghai Institute of International Studies, said to the Global Times. "Pakistan's hope of cooperation with China in building a naval base is nothing but a proposal," Zhao added. "The suggestion is natural given the fact that China helped Pakistan construct Gwadar port." India's Defense Minister A.K. Antony last week voiced "serious concern" toward so-called growing defense ties between China and Pakistan and said New Delhi's only answer is to strengthen its military capabilities, Reuters reported. As a major world trade power, it is obvious that China has its own interests in the Indian Ocean, just like other countries in the region, including India, Zhao told the Global Times Sunday. "It serves China's interests to see peace and stability in the region so any speculation on China-Pakistan cooperation will be meaningless," he added. Reports of China's agreement to run Gwadar port came amid the recent diplomatic row between Pakistan and the US following Washington's unauthorized military operation to kill Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil. US President Barack Obama has said he would approve a similar military operation if another militant leader were found in Pakistan. Wang Jia and agencies contributed to this story |
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