China likely to build military base in Pakistan, claims US report

A report presented at the Pentagon on Tuesday claimed that China is most likely to expand its military bases around the world and Pakistan will be a possible location for one such base. China established its first military facility in the African nation of Djibouti.

This possibility was cited in a 97-page annual report which was presented to Congress and it covered the advances throughout the Chinese military in 2016. The report noted that China has increased its defense spending the figure was reported to be exceeding $180 billion. This figure is higher than China’s official defense budget figure of $140.4 billion.

Even though the economic growth in China has slowed down, the Chinese leaders appeared committed to defense spending hikes for the ‘foreseeable future’.

The report repeatedly mentioned China’s construction of its first overseas naval base in Djibouti and how that area is strategically located at the southern entrance to the Red Sea on the route to Suez Canal. The US already has a key military base in Djibouti and now China has followed suite.

“China most likely will seek to establish additional military bases in countries with which it has a longstanding friendly relationship and similar strategic interests, such as Pakistan,” the report said.

The report also mentioned how China’s camp in Djibouti would worry India but it did not address India’s potential reaction to a Chinese base in Pakistan.

This is not the first time that China would be considering an arms deal in Pakistan as the country is already the primary market in the Asian-Pacific region for Chinese arms export. Just last year, China signed an agreement with Pakistan for the sale of eight submarines.

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Posted by fatimaarshad on Jun 7 2017. Filed under Latest News, World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.