1.17.2. Pakistan Factor: What’s New?

♤ China now appears set for an even tighter embrace of its already “iron brother” Pakistan, following a New Year slide in ties between Islamabad and Washington.- Atul Aneja- The Hindu, 8 January 2018.

♤ In the First Week of 2018 Pakistan’s central bank swiftly announced that it would use the Chinese Yuan (CNY) to settle bilateral trade and investment with China.

♤ Critics argue that, Mr. Trump’s tweet also played into the hands of the religious right, now harbouring political ambitions in Pakistan's elections next year. The Hafiz Saeed-led Jamaat- ud-Dawa (JuD) demanded the expulsion of the U.S. Ambassador during street protests in Lahore.

♤ In January 2018, according to media reports, it emerged that China plans to build its second military base overseas — after Djibouti at the mouth of the Red Sea — in Jiwani. Only 90 km to the east is the Gwadar deep sea port.

♤ The Global Times, A Chinese news paper, signaled that Pakistan would be justified in defining a new geopolitical calculus that covers China and Russia.