ISLAMABAD: Beijing backed Monday Pakistan’s investigation into the recent suicide attack that killed five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on March 26, after Islamabad accused Taliban authorities in Afghanistan of sheltering the “plotters” and demanded that they be handed over.
However, China refrained from holding Afghanistan’s interim govt responsible for sheltering the terrorists, as alleged by Islamabad, as it finds itself in a quandary because it shares close ties with Taliban govt in Afghanistan and has extended diplomatic recognition to the interim regime.
The Chinese workers died when a suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into their bus. The Chinese were working on Dasu hydropower project, which is about 300km north of Islamabad. The 4,320MW project is being constructed by China Gezhouba with funding from World Bank.
“China attaches great importance to the important progress made by the Pakistani side on the investigation of the terrorist attack,” PTI quoted Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning. “China calls on countries in the region to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation, root out all terrorist organisations, remove their breeding ground, and protect the common security and development interests of all countries.”
Earlier, Pakistani military authorities claimed the suicide bomber was an Afghan national. At a press conference in Lahore Sunday, interior minister Mohsin Naqvi said: “The attack was completely operated from Afghanistan and planned to specifically target Chinese personnel in Pakistan.” He blamed the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and “hostile foreign intelligence agencies”.
Pakistan’s allegation further strains bilateral ties as Islamabad continues to urge Kabul to take action against Pakistani Taliban based in Afghanistan. Islamabad has repeatedly accused Afghan Taliban of allowing TTP terrorists to operate on its soil, a charge Kabul denies.
Pakistan is under pressure from China as it has urged Islamabad to punish those involved in the attack on its citizens. Recently, Pakistan’s top economic body ECC approved a $2.58 million compensation package for the families of Chinese workers killed on March 26.
Thousands of Chinese nationals are working on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a multibillion-dollar energy and infrastructure project under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. Chinese workers have frequently been targeted, mostly by Baloch separatist groups in Baluchistan, who view CPEC as a Pakistani govt ploy to exploit the province’s natural resources.
However, China refrained from holding Afghanistan’s interim govt responsible for sheltering the terrorists, as alleged by Islamabad, as it finds itself in a quandary because it shares close ties with Taliban govt in Afghanistan and has extended diplomatic recognition to the interim regime.
The Chinese workers died when a suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into their bus. The Chinese were working on Dasu hydropower project, which is about 300km north of Islamabad. The 4,320MW project is being constructed by China Gezhouba with funding from World Bank.
“China attaches great importance to the important progress made by the Pakistani side on the investigation of the terrorist attack,” PTI quoted Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning. “China calls on countries in the region to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation, root out all terrorist organisations, remove their breeding ground, and protect the common security and development interests of all countries.”
Earlier, Pakistani military authorities claimed the suicide bomber was an Afghan national. At a press conference in Lahore Sunday, interior minister Mohsin Naqvi said: “The attack was completely operated from Afghanistan and planned to specifically target Chinese personnel in Pakistan.” He blamed the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and “hostile foreign intelligence agencies”.
Pakistan’s allegation further strains bilateral ties as Islamabad continues to urge Kabul to take action against Pakistani Taliban based in Afghanistan. Islamabad has repeatedly accused Afghan Taliban of allowing TTP terrorists to operate on its soil, a charge Kabul denies.
Pakistan is under pressure from China as it has urged Islamabad to punish those involved in the attack on its citizens. Recently, Pakistan’s top economic body ECC approved a $2.58 million compensation package for the families of Chinese workers killed on March 26.
Thousands of Chinese nationals are working on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a multibillion-dollar energy and infrastructure project under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. Chinese workers have frequently been targeted, mostly by Baloch separatist groups in Baluchistan, who view CPEC as a Pakistani govt ploy to exploit the province’s natural resources.