The geopolitics of proxies is clearly constraining the expansion and evolution of CPEC 2.0, demanding a strategic recalibration. The Government of Pakistan and Army Chief General Asim Munir have played a pivotal role in improving the prospects for peace and stability in the Middle East, a momentum that must now be institutionally converted into deeper socio-economic integration, trans-regional connectivity, investment and quality industrialization under the CPEC 2.0 framework.
Afghanistan’s borderlands, however, have become a volatile playground for overlapping regional and extra-regional proxies, including Israel, with certain African and Arabian Gulf States supporting various actors in an apparent collective effort to derail CPEC 2.0 and destabilize Balochistan, particularly Gwadar Seaport. Wise diplomacy is, therefore, the need of the hour to neutralize these multifaceted proxy dynamics. In this context, enhanced Pakistan-China-Iran anti-terrorism collaboration, reinforced by the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, can serve as a powerful regional equalizer.
The recent terrorist attack on a Rangers camp in Karachi, followed by Pakistan’s military and air force retaliation in Afghanistan’s Paktika, Paktia and Kunar provinces, vividly reflects escalating cross-border tensions. These hostilities are severely undermining the bright prospects of trans-regional connectivity with Central Asia through land, transport and rail corridors, a strategic priority for Pakistan and a cornerstone of CPEC 2.0. Indeed, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s recent statement at the 5th Tashkent International Investment Forum 2026, highlighting the Trans-Afghan Transport Corridor trilateral railway linking Central Asia to Pakistani seaports, appears increasingly unlikely to materialize under the weight of emerging power politics.
Nevertheless, pursuing the “Aerial Corridor” for direct commercial cargo between Lahore and Tashkent is a step in the right direction, effectively bypassing Afghanistan to avoid further delays in trans-regional connectivity. Kazakhstan has already established direct commercial cargo services with India; linking these with Pakistan would enable the genuine realization of stronger economic ties, a trade boom and deeper industrial cooperation between the two sides in the years ahead.
Significantly, Pakistan recently operationalized a “China-linked corridor” that enabled the first shipment from Kyrgyzstan to reach Karachi via the Khunjerab Pass and Sost Dry Port, offering Central Asian States a viable alternative route that bypasses Afghanistan. In parallel, Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan and Tajikistan’s Ambassador Sharifzoda Yusuf Toir have jointly explored trans-regional connectivity projects to boost bilateral trade, strengthen transit linkages and deepen institutional cooperation, connecting economies, communities and enterprises on both sides. The “Pakistan-Tajikistan Corridor”, therefore, emerges as a potential game-changer for realizing South Asia-Central Asia connectivity.
Afghanistan remains the principal hurdle. The unholy covert alliance and strategic partnerships among the TTA, TTP, BLA, Majeed Brigade, Fitna al-Khawarij and ISKP, combined with the Taliban’s chronic traits as warlords and exponents of a war economy, continue to obstruct the socio-economic integration and trans-regional connectivity that CPEC 2.0 envisions.
India’s continued water terrorism against Pakistan also directly affects CPEC 2.0’s plans for hybrid agricultural cooperation, hydropower generation and industrial collaboration, issues that must be resolved through dialogue, diplomacy and development. It is an encouraging sign that both sides have engaged in “Track 1.5 talks” in Thailand and Colombo, presenting bilateral demands regarding the smooth flow of waters and the resumption of airspace. These discussions should be expanded and pursued peacefully for the stability of South Asia, producing a positive ripple effect on the further implementation of CPEC 2.0.
CPEC 2.0’s “strategic architecture” cannot be evaluated in isolation from its regional geopolitical implications. Encouragingly, Islamabad has finally moved to operationalize existing transit arrangements and develop “alternative logistics” pathways connecting Central Asia to its ports, as strained ties with Afghanistan and periodic border disruptions continue to hamper traditional routes amid shifting regional trade dynamics.
Pakistan has opened “six overland transit routes” for goods destined for Iran, formalizing a road corridor through its territory as thousands of containers remain stranded at Karachi Port due to the US blockade of Iranian ports and ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, a significant step towards promoting regional trade and enhancing Pakistan’s role as a key trade corridor.
The six designated routes link Pakistan’s main ports, Karachi, Port Qasim and Gwadar, with the Iranian border crossings at Gabd and Taftan, traversing Balochistan via Turbat, Panjgur, Khuzdar, Quetta and Dalbandin. The shortest of these, the Gwadar-Gabd corridor, reduces travel time to the Iranian border to just two to three hours, compared with the sixteen to eighteen hours required from Karachi, cutting transport costs by an estimated 45 to 55 percent.
This corridor also reduces Pakistan’s reliance on longer maritime routes through the Gulf. Geopolitics, security and infrastructure will ultimately determine which corridors dominate, but this development firmly positions Pakistan as the primary overland gateway for China-backed trade routes into West Asia and beyond.
Analytically, the Blue-Gold Corridor, linking Gwadar to Central Asia via Chaghai, Herat and Tashkent, offers the shortest land route to the region and a potential conduit for minerals and agricultural products, yet again faces security threats because Afghanistan remains a haven for regional and global terrorist groups. The Gwadar-Mashhad corridor, relying on existing Iranian infrastructure, provides the fastest and least expensive option, though Pakistan must secure “sovereign security guarantees” from the Iranian government and the IRGC to counter Indian proxy warfare in the future. Finally, the CPEC-China route, stretching from Gwadar to Kashgar via Islamabad and linking the port to China’s western regions, gives Gwadar renewed strategic relevance in an increasingly uncertain region and represents the most ideal and feasible land corridor for connecting Pakistan with China, Central Asia and beyond, bypassing Afghanistan entirely.
In summary, the rigorous operationalization of the Quadrilateral Traffic in Transit Agreement (QTTA) holds the key to making existing mechanisms fully functional. Involving Pakistan, China, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the QTTA is designed to facilitate the cross-border movement of goods while circumventing Afghanistan.
CPEC 2.0 will transform Pakistan through innovation, sustainability and regional connectivity, shaping a future of inclusive economic growth. The completion of major transport networks, power generation projects and Gwadar-related developments has already laid a strong foundation for Pakistan’s economic transformation.
The next stage of cooperation centres on Special Economic Zones, industry relocation, agricultural modernization, information technology, renewable energy and business-to-business partnerships. By successfully operationalizing new westward trade routes to Central Asia via China and Iran, Pakistan is shifting decisively away from traditionally Afghanistan-dependent transit corridors, providing exporters with cheaper, safer and more reliable access to the landlocked Central Asian Republics of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
