The World Briefly

March 28, 2024

Risks and Rewards

Pakistan

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Five Chinese nationals working on a major infrastructure project died in a suicide bombing in northern Pakistan Tuesday, the latest in a series of attacks targeting Chinese interests in the country and elsewhere in the developing world, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Pakistani authorities said a van carrying the Chinese workers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was struck by a car carrying explosives. The Chinese embassy in Pakistan added that the Chinese were heading to a dam construction project when they were attacked.

The bombing underscores the mounting security risks Beijing is facing in developing nations, such as Pakistan, which are major recipients of Chinese investments as the country attempts to expand its global influence. Some of these projects, which span Asia and Africa, have led to resentment by locals who say they fail to benefit from these investments and “lopsided” lending deals.

These projects, meanwhile, have led to numerous attacks against Chinese workers and institutions.

In Pakistan, insurgents have repeatedly targeted Chinese construction sites and personnel over the past few years.

For example, two years ago, a suicide bomber blew herself up outside Karachi University’s Chinese language institute, killing three Chinese teachers and a Pakistani driver. The Baloch Liberation Army – a separatist group in the southwestern Balochistan province – claimed responsibility.

Also, the army said it thwarted two major attacks by militants in Balochistan in the past week, including an attempt to storm a part of the Gwadar port complex, a major part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

Meanwhile, nine Chinese workers were killed by a gunman at a gold mine run by a Chinese company in the Central African Republic last week, reported Reuters. The Chinese embassy said Sunday there had been many “vicious” security incidents against workers of foreign mining enterprises in the area.

This story originally appeared in the March 28, 2024 newsletter, Echoes of a Boom.