Welcome back to the China In Eurasia briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter tracking China's resurgent influence from Eastern Europe to Central Asia.
I'm RFE/RL correspondent Reid Standish and here's what I'm following right now.
Lockdown In Islamabad
Following the killing of two Chinese engineers and shooting deaths of 21 miners, Pakistan's capital was put under security lockdown as Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang landed in Islamabad for a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meeting.
Here's why that's important.
Finding Perspective: Li's visit is the first by a Chinese premier to Pakistan in 11 years, and he was received by Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the airport.
The SCO meeting with nine of the bloc's full member states kicked off on October 15 and will last two days.
Unlike the leaders summit that occurred back in July in Kazakhstan, this current gathering in Islamabad is a heads-of-government meeting that features the prime ministers of SCO members Belarus, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, India, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, as well as the vice president of Iran.
Worried about security, the Pakistani government announced a three-day public holiday in Islamabad, with schools and businesses shut and large contingents of police and paramilitary forces deployed across the city.
Pakistani authorities have also sought to curb all movement of Chinese nationals in the city, citing fears of violence from armed groups.
What To Watch: Tensions were rising in the capital after the main opposition Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaf (PTI) party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan called for a protest on October 15 in the city if the government did not allow Khan's family members, lawyers, and doctors to meet him in prison.
Security tensions have also been inflamed by attacks in the country, including those targeting Chinese citizens in Pakistan.
On October 6, an attack with explosives near Karachi's Jinnah International Airport killed two Chinese nationals. The Balochistan Liberation Army, a separatist militant group, claimed responsibility.
Chinese citizens working in Pakistan have become targets for militant groups in the country and a point of growing tensions between Beijing and Islamabad.
Another attack in northwest Pakistan killed five Chinese engineers in March and a high-profile 2021 suicide bombing killed nine Chinese engineers.
Why It Matters: The attacks on Chinese nationals are likely to figure in the talks as Li and Sharif lead their respective delegations to discuss economic and trade ties and cooperation under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a $65 billion infrastructure investment under China's Belt and Road Initiative.
CPEC has faced setbacks on the ground in recent years amid funding disagreements, security concerns for Chinese workers, and corruption scandals.
Sharif is hoping to use the SCO meeting and Li's trip, which also includes a bilateral visit, to reignite Chinese interest in CPEC and calm some of Beijing's lingering security concerns.
Sharif's office said he and Li already discussed economic and trade ties and cooperation during a meeting on October 14.
They both also already virtually inaugurated the CPEC-funded Gwadar International Airport in Balochistan Province in a ceremony telecast live by Pakistan's state-run TV.
Sharif described the airport as a gift from Beijing and the people of China to Pakistan.
Three More Stories From Eurasia
1. Tsai Visits Europe
Taiwan's ex-President Tsai Ing-wen spoke in Prague on October 14 and said the self-ruling island is on the front line of defending democracy from assaults by authoritarian countries.
The Details: The comments came at the Forum 2000 conference, where Tsai shook hands with Czech President Petr Pavel.
The Czech Republic, like most countries, has no official diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but the two sides have moved closer as Beijing ratchets up military threats against the island and Taipei seeks new friends in Eastern and Central Europe.
Pavel and Tsai spoke briefly at the opening of the conference, and the former Taiwanese leader sat through an opening speech by Pavel and a panel he was part of.
Pavel's office said he did not plan a meeting with Tsai, and the former Taiwanese president later also met with the heads of both chambers of the Czech parliament.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Beijing firmly opposed the visit to Prague.
Tsai will carry on to Brussels where she is slated to meet with officials.
She was also set to travel to Britain, but the Guardian reported that the UK Foreign Office asked for Tsai's visit to be postponed so as not to anger China ahead of a trip by Foreign Minister David Lammy.
2. Laying BRICS
Ahead of Russia hosting the BRICS summit next week, the Kremlin walked back its comments describing Saudi Arabia as a member of the BRICS bloc of countries.
What It Means: Saudi Arabia has been invited to join BRICS but has not yet formally done so.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov described it as a BRICS member and said its foreign minister would attend the upcoming October 22-24 summit in the Russian city of Kazan.
But when Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked to clarify Riyadh's status in the bloc, he said: "The summit will take place now. We will supply additional information on who will represent Saudi Arabia, whether it will be represented at this summit, and we will draw conclusions from this."
BRICS, which originally comprised Brazil, Russia, India, and China, has expanded to include South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates.
High-level Saudi involvement at the summit would be a diplomatic boost for Moscow, who views the grouping as an important part of its strategy to counter U.S. global influence and defeat Western attempts to isolate it with sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
"Russia is not isolated. In the modern world, it is very difficult to isolate any country, especially a state like the Russian Federation," Peskov said.
3. A Stop In Belgrade
In the latest sign of close cooperation between China and Serbia, Li Xiaoxin, a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and director of the State Commission for Public Sector Reform, arrived in Belgrade on October 14, RFE/RL's Balkan Service reports.
What You Need To Know: Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, who met with Li, said Serbia is extremely proud of its "excellent relations, ironclad friendship, and overall cooperation with China." Vucic posted a photo of the meeting on Instagram, saying he and Li discussed economic cooperation between Serbia and China.
This cooperation is "dynamically developing" through numerous infrastructure and energy projects and "increasingly intense" investment cooperation, especially in mining and the automobile industry, Vucic said.
In addition to meetings with officials in Belgrade, members of the Chinese delegation are meeting with the leadership of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).
The SNS said on October 14 that the visit comes after the establishment of cooperation between Serbia and China and after close party cooperation between SNS and the Chinese Communist Party.
Across The Supercontinent
Yuan Shortage: Chinese yuan-denominated loans have been a lifeline for some Russian companies since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But as The Bell reports, there isn't enough Chinese currency to go around and Russia is facing a yuan liquidity crisis.
Another China-Uzbekistan Deal: Uzbekistan's Senate ratified a government agreement with China on the mutual protection of classified information. The law, approved during a Senate meeting, has been sent to the president for final signing.
Ukraine Lessons For Taiwan: After witnessing the crucial utility of reliable networks in conflicts like Ukraine, Taiwan's government is taking steps in case a Chinese attack cripples the island's communications.
Taipei's main telecoms company, Chunghwa, and a British-European company, Eutelsat OneWeb, are expected to help bring Low Earth Orbit satellite Internet service by the end of the month.
Finland Goes East: Finnish President Alexander Stubb will make a state visit to China on October 28-31.
According to the press release, the Finnish president will discuss bilateral ties with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the Ukraine war, and other international issues.
One Thing To Watch
Amid intensifying rhetoric and debate over Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) and Europe's green transition, BMW CEO Oliver Zipse said Europe must cancel plans to ban new fossil fuel-emitting cars starting in 2035 in order to reduce reliance on Chinese-made batteries.
In March 2023, EU countries approved a landmark law that would require all new cars to have zero CO2 emissions from 2035, effectively banning diesel and petrol vehicles, and 55 percent lower CO2 emissions from 2030, compared to 2021 levels.
But executives like Zipse have long pushed for regulators to permit various technologies -- including alternative fuels like e-fuels or biofuels and hydrogen fuel cell cars -- and said it will help keep European companies competitive.
That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you might have.
Until next time,
Reid Standish
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