Pakistan bows to China, lets Beijing set up security posts on its soil

Islamabad (TIP)- Pakistan has quietly conceded unprecedented security space to China, agreeing to allow the establishment of Chinese-controlled “security posts” inside its territory amid mounting pressure from Beijing over repeated attacks on Chinese nationals. According to senior security sources cited by CNN-News18, the move marks a significant erosion of Pakistan’s sovereignty and reflects Islamabad’s deepening strategic dependence on China as it struggles to control militant violence on its own soil.
The decision follows sustained Chinese anger over Pakistan’s failure to protect workers and assets linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, despite years of military deployment. Nearly 90 Chinese citizens have been killed in Pakistan since 2014, exposing what Beijing sees as a chronic security breakdown. With Islamabad unable to guarantee safety, China has now pushed its way deeper into Pakistan’s internal security architecture.
China pushes for inner security posts inside Pakistan
Sources told CNN-News18 that Pakistan’s commitments were finalised during a recent China-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue in Beijing, where Chinese officials raised sharp concerns over continuing militant attacks on Chinese engineers, technicians, and construction workers.
During the visit, Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi reportedly signed a confidential agreement with China’s Ministry of Public Security. Under this arrangement, Pakistan has agreed to allow the creation of Chinese “inner-posts” or security nodes located close to Chinese personnel and assets, going well beyond conventional perimeter protection.
Islamabad has also agreed to expand Special Protection Units that will operate exclusively for Chinese nationals. These SPUs are being deployed across Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, Sukkur, Peshawar, Gwadar, and Gilgit-Baltistan, supplementing the military forces already guarding major CPEC projects.
Sources say Beijing has been blunt in its assessment that Pakistan’s existing security framework has failed. China has therefore demanded layered, localised protection closer to Chinese sites, along with joint police training, deeper intelligence sharing, and a coordinated counter-terrorism mechanism involving both countries’ security agencies.
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Interior Minister Naqvi have assured Chinese officials that Islamabad is taking “strong measures at all levels” to plug security gaps. Both sides have also agreed to conduct joint security reviews every 90 days, effectively institutionalising Chinese oversight of Pakistan’s internal security arrangements.
Beijing’s non-negotiable terms and Pakistan’s vulnerability
Despite pumping nearly $60 billion into Pakistan’s infrastructure, China remains deeply dissatisfied with the security environment. Sources told CNN-News18 that Beijing placed just two non-negotiable demands before Islamabad.
The first is absolute security for Chinese nationals operating in Pakistan. The second is a one-window operational system that allows Chinese investments, logistics, and financial flows to bypass Pakistan’s slow and opaque bureaucracy.
For Pakistan, the concessions underline its growing inability to say no to its primary economic lifeline. Analysts say the expanding Chinese security footprint raises uncomfortable questions about transparency, civilian oversight, and how much control Islamabad is willing to surrender in exchange for financial survival.
The developments carry serious implications for India. The expansion of Chinese security infrastructure in Pakistan, particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan, brings Chinese personnel closer to India’s sensitive northern frontiers. It also deepens China’s physical presence in territories that India considers illegally occupied by Pakistan.
More importantly, the growing integration of Chinese and Pakistani security mechanisms strengthens the strategic nexus between Beijing and Islamabad. This risks turning Pakistan into a forward operating zone for Chinese interests in South Asia, with potential spillover effects for regional stability.