Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain and Chinese President Xi Jinping agree to forge ahead with the CPEC. (Photo : Getty Images)
The Chinese government is now trying to end the dispute over Kashmir because China wants to proceed with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Chinese state media said that there is a total of $50 million worth of investments that is going to be produced by the initiative.
The mediation between India and Pakistan was compared to the efforts done to resolve the conflict between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
An article from the Global Times wrote, "China has always adhered to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, but that doesn't mean Beijing can turn a deaf ear to the demands of Chinese enterprises in protecting their overseas investments."
The article said that China is finding it difficult to deal with other superpowers in Asia. The treatment in India is different because China's economic influence in the sub-continent is less than other smaller Asian countries.
The state publication wrote, "For instance, while China has the capability to resolve conflicts through mediation given its increased economic influence, the nation needs to be very prudent in dealing with other big powers, India included, in the region."
It also said that mediating between India and Pakistan over Kashmir issue would perhaps be one of the toughest challenges facing China in dealing with regional affairs to safeguard its overseas interests.
However, Zhang Yunling from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences believes that China should just stop the CPEC if China fails to achieve peace in the region.
He said, "Any transnational projects involve concerns of different countries. We need to coordinate that to strike a balance to be acceptable to all parties. If we can't reach that balance, maybe we can stop it for some time."
The expert believes that stopping the CPEC is an alternative, especially if a resolution to a conflict is too hard to achieve.
