In a book called, ‘China’s Asian dream’, Tom Miller has taken a new look at Beijing’s war on terrorism. The Chinese government has started the process of extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corridoor (CPEC) to Afghanistan. If successful, the move will put China in the forefront of the international war on terrorism in West Asia. It may also increase its bargaining power with India. Miller has argued that China has chosen to invest heavily in Pakistan to pressure it to cut off links between Islamic terrorists in Xinjiang province and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Beijing is concerned about the threat of Muslim separatists who have been carrying out strikes in the recalcitrant province. The insurgents have also spread their operations to other parts of China. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridoor according to Tom Miller is in the form of a bride. The intention is to tell Pakistan that China will pump finance into the country if Islamabad takes effective action against terrorism which is also destabilising the civilian government in Pakistan.
The Afghan government is cash-strapped and has welcomed the Chinese move to extend the Economic Corridoor. It will help transportation and energy infrastructure in that country. Besides, it will strengthen people-to -people ties between Afghanistan and China. It may appear that India should not be exercised about the One Belt, One Road (OBOR) proposal. However, it is unlikely that New Delhi would respond to a Chinese offer of a piece of action in India extended from Afghanistan. It has grave objections to the CPEC passing through Pak-occupied Kashmir. The security situation there is hardly satisfactory.