India blocks China, Pakistan move to have BRI in NAM papers
China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) document at a recent ministerial meet of the grouping in Baku (capital of Azerbaijan). India was also successful in nixing efforts by Pakistan (at China's behest) to include reference to South China Sea disputes in the NAM document, ET has reliably learnt. SE Asian states, who are members of NAM and party to the South China Sea dispute, worked closely with India to defeat plans by Pakistan, hinted persons familiar with the development.
Several SE Asian states were dismayed at Pakistan's initiative to push reference to South China Sea in the NAM document as Islamabad has no role in the dispute. China is an observer at NAM and has been trying to push its agenda via Pakistan. Azerbaijan, a close ally of Pakistan, is the current chair of NAM.
Azerbaijan will hand over the NAM Chairmanship to Uganda (India's close ally in Africa) at the NAM high-level conference in Kampala, Uganda, at the end of January 2024. ET has learnt that intense efforts were made by Pakistan to include references of BRI and CPEC in the NAM document. Indian diplomats launched efforts to scuttle Pakistani efforts.
Hosts Azerbaijan finally did not back Pakistani efforts, it has been learnt. India has strong reservations against CPEC as it violates India's sovereignty by passing through PoK. India's reservations on BRI have been on display even in the SCO documents.
India has maintained that BRI has pushed several countries, including those in India's neighbourhood, to a debt crisis. But it was not just the BRI-CPEC-South China Sea. India, at the Baku meet, also weathered a storm launched by Pakistan on Kashmir.
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