China-Pakistan economic corridor to expand into Afghanistan: Why it matters for India

Pakistan and China have agreed to extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan in an effort to deepen the trilateral cooperation between the three nations. The move has been consistently opposed by India since it involves constructions through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).


This is the first trilateral meeting between the three since Operation Sindoor, India's offensive against terror infrastructure in Pakistan and PoK post Pahalgam attack.

The three nations that share borders with India also reaffirmed their commitment towards "regional peace, stability, and development".


"Pakistan, China, and Afghanistan stand together for regional peace, stability, and development," Pakistan's foreign minister Ishaq Dar, who is on a three-day visit to China, said.


"They discussed enhancing diplomatic engagement, strengthening communications, and taking practical steps to boost trade, infrastructure, and development as key drivers of shared prosperity. They agreed to deepen Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation and extend the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan," PTI reported quoting Pakistan's foreign office (FO) statement.

Why it matters for India?

India and Pakistan have recently retreated from the brink of war after the two nations launched military actions against each other. New Delhi has always raised concerns over the terror infrastructure being funded by Pakistan, especially in PoK, allegedly leading to Pahalgam terror attack. This led India to launch Operation Sindoor targeting nine terror sites in the neighbouring nation and PoK.

China, meanwhile, expressed support for its "all-weather friend" during the operation and its foreign minister remained in constant touch with the Pakistani counterpart. Moreover, Pakistan's use of Chinese weaponry in its retaliation came as no surprise, considering that China accounts for 82% of Islamabad’s defence imports.

Should Afghanistan's inclusion concern India?

India has, in the past, strongly condemned China and Pakistan for encouraging participation of third countries in CPEC projects.

"We have seen reports on encouraging proposed participation of third countries in so-called CPEC projects. Any such actions by any party directly infringe on India's sovereignty and territorial integrity. India firmly and consistently opposes projects in the so-called CPEC, which are in Indian territory that has been illegally occupied by Pakistan," MEA had said in 2022.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan's inclusion comes at a time when the Taliban government condemned Pahalgam terror attack and rejected the Pakistan army’s claims that India had launched missile strikes on Afghan territory.

This led to the first political engagement between India and the Taliban, as the two expressed appreciation for Kabul’s unequivocal condemnation of the April 22 terror attack that killed 26 people.

As India already has border issues with China and Pakistan, Afghanistan's solidarity with the two might prove to be hazardous.