‘China’s strategic red line: unwavering support for Pakistan’

This is apropos three letters to the Editor titled above carried by the newspaper on Tuesday, Thursday and yesterday.

India must now revise its strategic calculus. For too long, Indian planners assumed that limited strikes or hybrid warfare against Pakistan could proceed without triggering third-party escalation. But China’s position has changed that permanently. The illusion of unilateral maneuvering has been shattered. India now faces the reality of a two-front military, diplomatic, and possibly economic counter-pressure.

China’s readiness to match rhetoric with resources is clear. Pakistan, fortified by Chinese support, is no longer strategically isolated. India must ask itself: is it prepared for a confrontation not just with Pakistan, but with Pakistan and China acting in concert?

Despite the gravity of the situation, Professor Gao’s remarks were also an invitation – to de-escalate:

“This is the right time to call on both India and Pakistan to exercise the maximum restraint and seek a peaceful solution.”

That call must not go unheard. With 1.6 billion people living in the arc of conflict between the Himalayas and the Arabian Sea, the cost of further escalation is not abstract – it is existential.

For now, the message from Beijing is unmistakable: China will fight shoulder to shoulder with Pakistan if India dares to turn South Asia into a battleground.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025