ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has ruled out the possibility of forming a joint security force with China to protect thousands of Chinese workers in Pakistan, the information minister said on Monday, despite concerns raised by Beijing during recent high-level talks between the two countries.

Last week, as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited China for the SCO heads of state summit, President Xi Jinping pressed him to improve security for Chinese nationals who have been repeatedly attacked by militants while working on Beijing-funded multi-billion-dollar infrastructure projects in the South Asian country. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a showcase for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s global Belt and Road Initiative projects but security threats to Chinese workers in the country have become a source of tension between the close allies.

Media have also widely reported that recent attacks — particularly a bombing in the southern port city of Karachi that killed two Chinese engineers last year — have angered Beijing and pushed it to seek a joint security management system with Islamabad. 

In an exclusive interview with Arab News, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar ruled out the possibility of a joint security force or Islamabad allowing Beijing to bring in its own security staff to provide protection to thousands of Chinese citizens working in Pakistan.

“Obviously, there has to be cooperation, there has to be intel-sharing, there has to be a lot of exchange of ideas, that happens all the time,” said Tarar, who was part of Sharif’s delegation to China. 

“But with regard to on-ground security [presence of Chinese forces], I think Pakistani security forces, Pakistani armed forces, are well equipped to deal with the situation and they’re already dealing with it.”

Pakistan has deployed tens of thousands of army troops, paramilitary units and police to protect Chinese projects, including power plants and the Arabian Sea port of Gwadar. But much of the planned $60 billion investment is widely believed to have been put on hold, partly due to security concerns. Both religiously motivated and separatist militants have targeted Chinese personnel.

Projects have been hit particularly in the southwestern province of Balochistan, where Gwadar is located. 

Major incidents also include a suicide bombing outside Karachi airport late last year that killed two Chinese engineers, and a March 2024 attack in which five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver died when a bomber rammed a convoy near a dam project in northwest Pakistan. In 2021, a bus bombing in Dasu, also in the northwest, killed 13 people, nine of them Chinese nationals.

Tarar acknowledged Beijing’s concerns.

“I think as far as the security situation is concerned, yes, it’s a concern,” the information minister said. 

“And the prime minister [Sharif] also raised this in his speeches [in China] that we are faced with a situation where a security situation does exist, but things are getting better gradually.”

CHINESE INVESTORS ‘READY TO RELOCATE’ TO PAKISTAN

Tarar described Sharif’s recent trip to China as “historic,” highlighting the success of business-to-business (B2B) meetings held on the sidelines of the SCO summit. He said 900 business participants from both countries signed joint venture agreements worth $1.5 billion and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) worth $7 billion.

“I think this B2B conference was a great matchmaking event in which the EV [electric vehicle] sector, the textile sector, the mining sector, the energy sector, all sectors were covered,” the minister said.

“Chinese investors are ready to even relocate their industry to Pakistan because it is beneficial for them to export their products from Pakistan because the port is near, the Gwadar port [in Balochistan], the Karachi port.”

Asked which companies are planning to come to Pakistan, he said several textile firms, electric vehicle manufacturers and software development companies had shown interest.

“A number of joint ventures will be on the ground within the next six months,” Tarar said. “You will see a lot of business activity going on in Pakistan, with Chinese businessmen coming here, Chinese firms moving their offices here, opening new offices, and relocating industry.”

In response to a question on whether the Asian Development Bank would fund upgrades to part of Pakistan’s creaking railway system, replacing China after prolonged delays in financing, Tarar said “a lot of negotiations are going on.”

Reuters reported last month, citing multiple anonymous sources, that the ADB is in advanced talks to lead financing of a $2 billion upgrade of a 500-km stretch of the ML-1 railway line from Karachi to Rohri in the south, which had previously been part of the CPEC project.

“We have a lot of discussions going on. And even in China, they were very positive with regards to facilitating any process with regards to the ML-1,” Tarar said, without providing further details.

“I don’t see any negativity on any side with regard to the ML-1. And ML-1, whichever arrangement is finalized, I think there will be cooperation and there will be facilitation from the Chinese side as well. Let’s see how it turns out eventually.”

US TIES

Tarar also discussed a striking turnaround in Pakistan’s ties with the US after years of mistrust and diplomatic drift. In July 2025, the two countries finalized a landmark trade agreement that significantly reduced reciprocal tariffs — from around 29 percent down to 19 percent — on key Pakistani exports like textiles, leather goods, surgical instruments, IT services, and agricultural products, marking one of the lowest tariff levels among major Asian economies.

Just this week, Pakistan inked a $500 million memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the US Strategic Metals and the Frontier Works Organization to develop its critical minerals sector, including immediate exports of antimony, copper, gold, tungsten, and rare earth elements, as well as plans for a US-backed poly-metallic refinery in Pakistan. 

Analysts say this revival of Pakistan–US cooperation could inject new friction into its “iron brotherhood” with Beijing, forcing Pakistan into a delicate balancing act between its two most powerful patrons.

Asked if China was concerned, Tarar said Islamabad’s relations with other countries are “independent and unique“:

“With regard to the entire situation, the geopolitical situation, global politics, you’ve seen that Pakistan has gained importance, and Pakistan is seen as a serious country. And we’ve had a lot of diplomatic successes. So, I think one relationship is not at the cost of the other.”