- China is considering increasing its involvement in the neighbouring country of Afghanistan amidst fear that the destabilizing situation that may result from the withdrawal of US troops could have a direct impact on its own security.
- An attestation of that is its role in, organising separate bilateral and trilateral dialogues involving Afghanistan, Russia, Pakistan and India, and pushing for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) grouping’s larger role in the area following the NATO withdrawal.
- This is in interest of its own internal security and stability following the recent recurring attacks at different railway stations by armed men. Five arrested in connection with this were sentenced to prison terms for alleged separatist activities.
- Think tanks have released a first ever National Blue Book, or policy guidelines warning China of increasing threat to its internal security and calling for more focus towards resolution of its internal security issues despite its increasing border disputes with Japan, North Korea and its other maritime issues.
- Al-Qaeda is purported to have set up training camps and provided arms to the separatists groups, and it is also believed that members of the separatist East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) have been hiding in border areas between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
- Read at: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-international/call-for-china-to-be-proactive-in-afghanistan/article5995078.ece
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