Gunners Shot

Gwadar has been touted as the Jewel in the crown of CPEC. Pakistan hyped up Gwadar as its Dubai which will revive its fortunes and make it a great power. Lot of plans were made and announced in 2013. Billions of dollars have been sunk in to build an unused port and an unused airport. The Chinese are clear. They will not give up on their Gwadar dreams. They want to make Gwadar China’s first overseas theatre command HQ. They also intend to base for China’s second strike capability there. There is however a different reality on ground. The locals who have been completely alienated are up in arms and targeting the Chinese and Pakistanis, Moreover , climate change, unheard of flooding cum stagnation and rising sea water levels are also posing unforeseen threats. Infrastructure to support all these grandiose plans is non existent. Chinese are very hesitant to spend any more money in Gwadar without security being assured. All in all there is a grim reality which India can exploit to ensure that developments in this region do not adversely affect its interests.