China seeks 'new fields' of cooperation with Pakistan military
China's defence minister Li Shangfu on Monday told Pakistan's navy chief that their militaries including their navies should 'expand into new fields of cooperation' to bolster the capability of the two neighbours in safeguarding security in the region.
Ties between the two militaries stretch back years, with their navies and air forces holding bilateral exercises in each other's territory.
For China, Pakistan and its access to the Arabian Sea is key in the event of a maritime blockade in the Strait of Malacca.
But Chinese interest in the region has stirred concern, especially in neighbouring India after China opened its first overseas military base in Djibouti on the northwestern fringe of the Indian Ocean in 2017.
China's Defence Minister Li Shangfu told Pakistan's Chief of Naval Staff Amjad Khan Niazi, who was visiting Beijing, that the two countries' military relationship was a key part of bilateral ties.
The United States previously identified Pakistan as a possible location for a future Chinese military base, with Gwadar seen as the likely location. Any sign of that happening would fuel New Delhi's worries of growing Chinese military alliances and assets in its own backyard.
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