Islamabad: The Chinese Ambassador in Islamabad has demanded stronger security for Chinese nationals in Pakistan following a suicide attack in Gwadar that injured a Chinese worker.
The Chinese Ambassador Nong Rong met Pakistan’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid on Sunday and raised the issue of the safety of Chinese nationals in Pakistan and demanded stronger security protocol for them, reports Dawn.
Rashid said a joint strategy was being devised for the protection of Chinese companies and nationals in Pakistan. “We will improve the security protocol of Chinese nationals at any cost,” he assured the Chinese ambassador.
On August 20, a motorcade carrying Chinese workers was attacked by a suicide bomber at the Gwadar East-Bay Expressway project. Two children were killed in the blast that also left several people, including one Chinese national, injured. Following the incident, the Pakistani side sent the wounded to a hospital in Gwadar for treatment, according to the Chinese embassy.
Hours later media reported that the banned Baloch Liberation Army had claimed responsibility for the attack.
In a statement issued a day after the Gwadar motorcade attack, the Chinese embassy said: “Relevant departments at all levels in Pakistan must take practical and effective measures to implement strengthened whole-process security measures and upgrade security cooperation mechanism to ensure that similar incidents do not happen again.
“Recently, the security situation in Pakistan has worsened. There have been several terrorist attacks in succession, resulting in the casualties of several Chinese citizens. The Chinese Embassy in Pakistan reminds the Chinese citizens in Pakistan to be vigilant, strengthen safety precautions, reduce unnecessary outings, and take effective security protections.”
Earlier, on July 28 an armed motorcyclist had opened fire on a car carrying Chinese nationals in Karachi, causing serious gunshot wounds.
The shooting came close on the heels of a July 14 explosion that caused a bus carrying Chinese and Pakistani personnel for a Chinese-funded dam project in northwest Pakistan to plunge into a ravine, killing nine Chinese citizens and four Pakistanis.
Work on the Gwadar East-Bay Expressway was launched in November 2017. The project is considered a highlight of the mega China-Pakistan Economic Corridor framework.
