The Baloch House

Yang Jiechi on the Belt and Road Initiative and Preparations for the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation30 March 2019Following is an English version of the full text of the interview given to the media on March 29 by Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs.http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/download/FullTextYangJiechiontheBeltandRoadInitiative.doc
On 17 November 2018, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that the second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) would be held in Beijing in April 2019. The announcement has drawn keen interest of both Chinese and foreign media. On 29 March, Mr. Yang Jiechi, Member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, who oversees the preparations for the Forum, gave an inte…

Source: Xinhua| 2019-03-31 08:22:34|KAMPALA, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of people on Saturday took part in a run in Uganda's capital Kampala aimed at popularizing China's proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).China in 2013 proposed the BRI which refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, and aims to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa through the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road.Zheng Zhuqiang, Chinese ambassador to Uganda flagged of the run, which has already been held in 22 countries and regions within the BRI area.By May, the run would have taken place in 44 countries and regions."We are committed to contributing to the economic development of this country and we shall continue demonstrating this through channeling investments, supporting infrastructure and socio-economic developments," Zheng said shortly before flag off.He thanked Standard Chartered Bank, the organizers of t…

By A.N. BasilMar 30, 2019 11:41 PMChinese President Xi Jinping speaks next to French President Emmanuel Macron during a state dinner at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France March 25, 2019.(Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS)Ahead of the second Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum in April, a top Chinese diplomat explained the link between Beijing's massive infrastructure project and the United Nations' (UN) 2030 scheme of achieving sustainable development.In an interview with China Daily, Member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, Yang Jiechi, said the Belt and Road Initiative complements the UN's 2030 goals that covers various economic and diplomatic segments."At the global level, the BRI is well aligned with the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, thus forming a synergy of policies to promote global development," Yang noted. He e…

Washington, PTI |
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (File Photo)Chinese infrastructure and connectivity projects around the world have an element of "national security" and are less of an economic offer for host countries, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said as Beijing is gearing to host the second Belt and Road Forum. The One Belt One Road OBOR, also called the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is a multi-billion-dollar project focused on improving connectivity and cooperation among countries in Asia, Africa, China and Europe. Pompeo Thursday told a Washington audience that China poses security threat to the US, its friends and allies.“They’re moving into the South China Sea is not because they want freedom of navigation. Their efforts to build ports around the world aren’t because they want to be good shipbuilders and stewards of waterways, but rather they have a state national security element to each and every one of them,” Pompeo said in conversation with Rich Lowry…

Image Credit: Flickr/ Recon Asia

The Belt and Road makes China a player, but not the biggest nor the most dominant, in the game of international finance.By Richard BoucherMarch 29, 2019Chinese President Xi Jinping will host the second Belt and Road Forum in April, with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and dozens of other heads of state in attendance. Now is a good time to look at the reality of Xi’s signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Announced in 2013 and enshrined in the Chinese Communist Party’s constitution in 2017, the initiative gets a lot of attention and hype. Some see a plot to challenge the liberal world order, a new Marshall Plan, or a scheme to enslave developing nations; others the world’s biggest development initiative and the New Silk Road.What’s the reality? The Belt and Road constitutes a marginal increase in infrastructure development and improves Chinese access to supplies and markets, but the real action in infrastructure these days flows from private finance, not Chin…

A 51-kilometer expressway funded by China links the capital of Uganda to the international airport in Entebbe. This shot was taken in June 2018, prior to its inauguration. Photo: Sumy Sadurni / AFP

Local communities need to be appropriately consulted and integrated in cities where Chinese-funded projects occurByJONATHAN SILVER | ALAN WIGG

A massive redevelopment of the old Royal Albert Dock in East London is transforming a once-derelict waterfront into a gleaming business district. The project, which started in June 2017, will create 325,000 square meters of prime office space – a “city within a city,” as it has been dubbed – for Asian finance and tech firms.Last year, authorities in Kampala, Uganda celebrated as a ferry on Lake Victoria unloaded goods from the Indian Ocean onto a rail service into the city. This transport hub was the final component of the Central Corridor project, aimed at connecting landlocked Uganda to Dar es Salaam and the Indian Ocean.They are big, big projects  –…

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping before their meeting in Rome. Christian Minelli/Getty ImagesXi Jinping’s signature project got a boost when Italy became the first major European country to join. What was behind Italy’s decision and what might it mean for the United States and other EU countries?Article by Andrew ChatzkyMarch 27, 2019Chinese President Xi Jinping just returned from a visit to Europe to promote the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI), China’s unprecedented plan to expand its geopolitical reach. As Rome and Beijing signed a major deal on the BRI, several European leaders expressed alarm about the agreement’s ability to divide Europe.What was agreed to?During Xi’s first stop, in Rome, the Chinese and Italian leaders signed a memorandum of understanding signaling Italy’s participation in the BRI, a state-led investment effort that seeks to deepen Chinese infrastructure links across Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America.In total, Chine…

ANI | Asia | Last Updated at March 31 2019 08:50 IST
Quetta [Pakistan], Mar 31 (ANI): Quetta, a few days ago. In the Dasht Tera Mil area, volunteers of the Edhi Foundation buried twelve dead bodies without any identification. The bodies were decomposed beyond recognition and no DNA test had been done on them by the authorities.According to the volunteers, it is not the first time that they are forced to bury unknown bodies recovered from the streets and the fields of Balochistan. Last time was in January when 10 unidentified bodies had been buried in the same area by the same volunteers.It is not uncommon, unfortunately, to find mutilated dead bodies, in various stages of decomposition and beyond recognition, dotting the roads of Balochistan. It is part of the nefarious 'kill and dump' policy of Pakistani intelligence agencies, highlighted time and again by human rightsorganisations- both national and international.Mass graves were found in Balochistan for the first time in 201…

Hashim Nadeem
March 30, 2019
Media networks have recently had a policy shift towards educating the masses aptly packaged with entertainment. People have hardly known how the drug cartel worked and later uprooted before tuning in to one of their favourite seasons on Netflix. In the same way, corporate giants are effectively using all possible mediums in establishing a brand image and awareness about a certain technological feat. Apple has grown due to highly effective marketing mix and stands out as a niche product. The same applies to any government’s plans and propagation of policies in order to attain mass support. People in United Kingdom still consider the 48% to 52% result of the first Brexit referendum due to most of them not actually knowing the real implications that have subsequently brought United Kingdom to the brink of a political turmoil. It was government’s duty to inform and build a public understanding of the matter before venturing upon a legally binding referendum resu…

By: Rafiullah MandokhailQUETTA: In order to save thousands mothers and children lives, an awareness raising campaign – mother and child health in the first thousand days and beyond has been launched here in the provincial capital Quetta. The campaign titled ‘Umeed Say Aagay’ is aimed to foster a healthy community, where no mother or child dies, due to any preventable cause especially malnutrition. The campaign is initiated by Human Development Foundation in collaboration with Nutrition department – SUN secretariat, Ministry of Planning Development and Reform Government of Balochistan.   Ex-provincial minister Jaffar Khan Mandokhail, Ex-speaker Balochistan Assembly Jamal Shah Kakar, Director Health department Dr. Umer Hayat Hanjo, MNCH Specialist Wold Food Program Dr. Aftab Bhatti, MNCH Specialist UNICEF Dr. Aziz Khan, Program Policy Officer Strategic Planning Unit – IRMNCH, Director Nutrition Cell Balochistan Dr. Amin Mandokhail, Chief Nutrition Planning Commission Dr. Aslam Shaheen, …

Tahir NiazMarch 31, 2019
ISLAMABAD - Security forces on Saturday recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunition during an operation in the Balochistan province, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).  The operation was conducted on a tip off in Bahmbormountainous area between Sibi and Kohlu in the Balochistan province. According to an ISPR statement issued on Saturday, cache of arms and ammunition including explosives, rockets, mines, and mortar ammunition were recovered during the operation. The intelligence-based operation was conducted on terrorists’ suspected hideouts. It was part of the on-going operation Radd ul Fassad, a military offensive launched in February 2017 against the latent threat of terrorism.  According to the official sources, the ammunition was to be used in terrorist activities to sabotage peace in the province.



https://nation.com.pk/31-Mar-2019/forces-recover-huge-cache-of-arms-in-balochistan

PakistanToday
ISLAMABAD: The World Bank (WB) has suspended a $200 million loan due to allegations of corruption in Balochistan Integrated Water Resource Management and Development Project.The project was aimed to strengthen the provincial government’s capacity for monitoring and managing water resources and to improve community-based water management for targeted irrigation schemes in Balochistan.Sources told Pakistan Today that the lending organisation had signed the project with the government of Pakistan three years ago.Documents state that the project was supposed to mobilise communities to participate in the construction and rehabilitation of irrigation and drinking water supply facilities, flood protection infrastructure, watershed management, and environmental protection work as well as on-farm water management and agricultural productivity.Moreover, the project beneficiaries were supposed to be small-holding farmers (up to 12.3 acres) and medium holding farmers (12.35 to 49.4 …

Gautam SenUpdated : March 30, 2019, 6:17 PMPakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a meeting at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, on 19 March. REUTERSIt also has to do with the legality of China’s occupation of PoK territory ceded by Pakistan, the vital and irreplaceable artery of the entire historic BRI project.China’s veto of international sanctions against Masood Azhar appears superficially explicable, but loyalty to Pakistan being deemed the sole rationale lacks real conviction. The growing engagement of Russia with Pakistan also seems a little puzzling, given its historic ties with India and huge sale of arms to it that benefit Russian arms production and R&D massively. Both these situations require deeper reflection and the answer to the apparent conundrum in both instances lies in critical national interests of China and Russia and the geopolitics that underpin them.China’s willingness to countena…

March 29, 2019Samaa DigitalPhoto: AFPPrime Minister Imran Khan announced that the federal government will distribute health cards among the families in Gwadar. They will have health insurance of Rs720,000.“The development in Gwadar will benefit the whole world,” PM Khan said after performing the groundbreaking of the Gwadar International airport on Friday.“The development that doesn’t benefit common men is not development at all,” he said, adding that the government is planning to install a desalination plant too.Related: Balochistan to get its first cardiac instituteThe railways ministry will start a train from Quetta to Gwadar, he said, announcing that cargo and passenger ferry service from Gwadar to Karachi will also be started.“This is my first trip to Gwadar and I am very happy,” he said. “We are seeking help from China to develop the railway lines and planning to acquire latest technology.”“I am going to China in April and I look forward to expand our cooperation in various sec…