Mediation and Interference: Assessing Chinese Views & Analyses on the Latest India-Pak Tensions
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Executive Summary
In the aftermath of the April 22 terror attack on civilians in Pahalgam, Kashmir, there is an ongoing exchange of hostilities between India and Pakistan. As a regional power, a strategic ally of Pakistan, and a threat actor for India, China is developing its own response to the issue. Chinese analysts and commentators, in addition to government officials, are shaping rhetoric on what India-Pakistan tensions mean for each of the actors in specific, and for regional stability in general.
This Issue Brief assesses Chinese analysts and commentators’ views on the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan.
Three main threads emerge from an assessment of their writings:
China’s support is for Pakistan and its position, even if it is disguised as support for regional stability, peace, and de-escalation.
China is envisioning itself as a potential mediator in the bilateral tensions between India and Pakistan. But its pitch to mediate is based not on an interest in bringing a fundamental thaw between India and Pakistan, but enhancing its own leverage and regional legitimacy. A low-scale, limited, or simmering conflict between India and Pakistan serves China’s interests.
China, however, remains concerned about escalation, given its economic and security interests in Pakistan.
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