Our Correspondent
Beijing
China strongly condemning the terrorist attack on Pearl Continental (PC) hotel in Gwadar has praised the Pakistan’s security forces for their “swift action” in neutralizing the terrorists who attacked luxury hotel and ensured the safety of the Chinese personnel and institutions there.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang on Monday told a media briefing here while answering a question on the BLA attack, “China strongly condemns the terrorist attack on the Pearl Continental Hotel in Gwadar, expresses its condolences to the victims’ families and the injured.”
“According to China’s understanding there are no reports of Chinese casualties. Pakistan’s security forces took swift measures to eliminate terrorists, effectively guaranteeing security and stability in Gwadar and the safety of local Chinese personnel and institutions. China appreciates this,” he said. According to a BBC report, the BLA said that the hotel, a centre piece of a multi-billion-dollar Chinese project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), was selected in order to target Chinese and other investors. A large number of Chinese are currently working in Gwadar, the key port in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province which is being linked to China’s Xinjiang province as part of the USD 60 billion CPEC.
The BLA is opposing the foreign (Chinese) investments in Balochistan, saying they do not benefit the local people.
Geng said “China will continue to firmly support Pakistan’s anti-terrorism efforts and believes that the Pakistani government and army are capable of maintaining national security and stability.”
Referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statement condemning the attack, the spokesperson said, “We note that Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack saying that it is an attempt to undermine Pakistan’s economic prosperity and stressed that his country would not allow terrorist plots to succeed.”