The Baloch House

Supchina.comAdrian Zenz is a researcher at the European School of Culture and Theology in Korntal, Germany. Last year, he played a pivotal role in documenting the massive expansion of detention facilities in China’s Xinjiang region — what the government calls “vocational training centers,” but which function as political indoctrination camps. Zenz’s groundbreaking research estimating that as many as 1 million Muslims had disappeared into the facilities was published in the Jamestown China Brief, and then in the peer-reviewed journalCentral Asian Survey.Today, at the 40th Human Rights Council in Geneva, Zenz defended an updated estimate on just how far the mass internment campaign has gone. Reuters has the report: 1.5 million Muslims could be detained in China's Xinjiang: academic.Adrian Zenz, an independent German researcher, said that his new estimate was based on satellite images, public spending on detention facilities and witness accounts of overcrowded facilities and missing …

M ZIAUDDIN MAR 13TH, 2019ARTICLEThe Balochistan Assembly through a unanimously adopted resolution has recently called upon the federal government to ensure that interests and rights of the people of the province are adequately protected while reaching any agreement with Saudi Arabia on the setting up of an oil refinery in Gwadar.The resolution said the Balochistan government and lawmakers of Balochistan must be taken into confidence before signing the agreements with Saudi Arabia on the oil refinery and other development projects in Balochistan.Members of the government and the opposition taking part in the discussion on the issue said that they had no objection to the investment of any country in Balochistan, but they just wanted to be sure that rights and interests of the people of Balochistan had been adequately protected and guaranteed in the investment agreements being signed with foreign countries.Moving the resolution, Sana Baloch said that in the agreements aspects such as pro…

Chinese maritime militia members in an inspection aboard their fishing vessel (undated file image)BY CIMSEC 2019-03-11 10:59:26On March 15, the Naval Institute Press will publish China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations, a volume edited by professors Andrew S. Erickson and Ryan D. Martinson from the Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute. CIMSEC recently reached out to Erickson and Martinson about their latest work.Q: The title of your book is China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations. How does the term “gray zone” apply here?Martinson: We usually prefer to use Chinese concepts when talking about Chinese behavior, and Chinese strategist do not generally use the term “gray zone.” But we think that the concept nicely captures the essence of the Chinese approach. We were inspired by the important work done by RAND analyst Michael Mazarr, who contributed a chapter to the volume. In his view, gray zone strategies have three primary characteristics. They seek to alter the status quo.…

Mehtab HaiderMarch 8, 2019
ISLAMABAD: Defense and foreign affairs experts Thursday said the Pakistan-India crisis was not yet over so the US, China as well as other western countries will have to continue pushing them to de-escalation through the backdoor channels to avoid a full-scale war.They expressed these views during a seminar titled “Crisis or Peace: Pakistan, India and Afghanistan” organized by the Institute of Policy Reforms (IPR) here at the Islamabad Club.It was also consensus among them that Pakistan should clean and bring its house in order as non state actors (NSAs) were creating more difficulties for it at the diplomatic level.It was also pointed out that the recent escalation might result into hiking of defense budget by the two states, as New Delhi had already talking about it.The role of the media was also criticised, with the war mongering propaganda launched by the Indian media during the recent crisis.“We cannot accept the Indian offense as “new normal” as space of…

March 12, 2019Russian and Chinese Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping at the Kremlin, Russia on 4 July 2017. The Silk Road runs through parts of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and aligns with Russia’s strategic interests [PPIO]Thirteenth Century adventurer and explorer Marco Polo opened Europe to China when he journeyed from his home in Venice to then capital Peking (now Beijing).He chronicled his trip on the legendary Silk Road in a series of writings which introduced Europeans to the splendor and wealth of China.The ancient Silk Road connected China and Europe from around 100 B.C. The 6,000-km road linked ancient Chinese, Indian, Babylonian, Arabic, Greek and Roman civilizations.Trade conducted along the Silk Road reached much of Arabia and the eastern Africa and allowed for a proliferation of not just tradeable commodities like spices and textiles, but science and technology.Nearly 750 years after Marco Polo used the Silk Road, Italy is again looking to connect t…

Parvez JabriMarch 13, 2019ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform, Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar said the Cabinet Committee on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has decided to establish CPEC Business Forum to tap true potential of this important corridor.Talking to media after the committee meeting, the minister said that the formation of the forum was being deliberated since long and now its establishment has formally been decided.He said that members of the forum have already been finalized which would included representatives from business sectors, chambers, business councils and other sectors of economy.The minister said that the cabinet committee decided to enhance industrial cooperation and involve private sector. “The true potential of CPEC could not be materialized unless we promote industrial cooperation,” the minister said adding that the industrial cooperation would help enhance exports and reduce imports.He said that since CPEC was much related to …

Eurasian ReviewMuslim couple in Mumbai, India March 9, 2019SAAG 0 CommentsBy SAAGBy R M PandaIndia has the second largest population of Muslims and yet it has been denied its rightful place in the OIC meetings so far.  It was therefore a big diplomatic triumph for India when it was a invited to the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) meeting this year  for the first time since its formation.India’s External affairs minister Ms Sushma Swaraj addressed the inaugural session of the OIC’s 46th session of council of Foreign Ministers as a Guest of honour. India’s presence in the OIC meeting in Abu Dhabi was a major setback to Pakistan as it had been consistently opposing Indian presence in any form in the OIC. Sushma Swaraj made a very powerful speech emphasizing on peace, quoting from “Holy Quran”, “Guru Nanak dev” and the “Rig Veda”. She said every religion in the world stands for peace, compassion and brotherhood. India’s fight against terrorism must not be seen as a confrontation…

The Newspaper's Staff CorrespondentUpdated March 13, 2019Balochistan CM Alyani and Li Kan agreed to use prefab technology initially for building new schools in Gwadar and Ziarat. .— Photo courtesy of HTA Design LLPQUETTA: The Balochistan government and Chinese company CMEC agreed to build new schools in Gwadar and Ziarat using prefabrication technology under a public-private partnership programme.The agreement was reached on Tuesday between the provincial government and the Chinese company after a meeting between Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani and CMEC General Manager Li Kan.During the meeting, the Chinese company’s leader briefed Mr Alyani on his company’s projects and said that his company had expertise in constructing homes and buildings through prefabrication technology in a short period of time besides having experience in agriculture production through minimum use of water.“Because of shortage of water, Balochistan can shift its agriculture sector to modern…