BBC: Chinese president Xi Jinping visits troubled region of Tibet
President Xi Jinping has visited the politically troubled region of Tibet, the first official visit by a Chinese leader in 30 years.
The president was in Tibet from Wednesday to Friday, but the visit only reported by state media on Friday due to the sensitivities of the trip.
China is accused of suppressing cultural and religious freedom in the remote and mainly Buddhist region. The government denies the accusations.
In footage released by state broadcaster CCTV, Mr Xi was seen greeting a crowd wearing ethnic costumes and waving the Chinese flag as he left his plane.
He arrived in Nyingchi, in the south-east of the country and visited a number of locations to learn about urban development, before traveling to the capital Lhasa on the high-altitude railway.
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Defection?
China, which shares a border with Afghanistan, is making preparations for a Taliban takeover of the country. China's first preference will be to work with the new rulers and is signaling its population that despite the country's outspoken policy against Islamists, it, unlike others, adhered to a non-intervention policy. It also prepared its public for a Taliban-friendly policy by citing Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen, who called China a "friend" to Afghanistan and hopes to talk to Beijing about investing in reconstruction work. Most importantly, China cited Shaheen's assurances that Afghanistan would not serve as a launching pad for attacks on other countries: "People from other countries who want to use Afghanistan as a site [to launch attacks] against other countries, we have made a commitment that we will not allow them, whether it's an individual or entity against any country including China."
The Chinese Communist party's mouthpiece Global Times, reciprocated with the following assurance: "However, we believe that China will use its influence very carefully. China will not go to Afghanistan to fill the vacuum left by the US troops' withdrawal. The US forcibly invaded Afghanistan and once ambitiously tried to transform it and lead the country's reshaping. China's positioning as a friendly neighbor of Afghanistan will not change, nor will it change the basic principle of non-interference in Afghanistan's internal affairs. We will only provide necessary help within our capabilities, and we will never dominate Afghanistan."
Another possible sign in the wind was the July 21, 2021, announcement by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian that senior diplomat Yue Xiaoyong will replace Liu Jian as Special Envoy for Afghan Affairs.
Yue previously served as Chinese ambassador to Qatar, Jordan and Ireland and according to the announcement "will establish a working relationship with colleagues from relevant parties as soon as possible and maintain close communication and coordination." Yue's posting in Doha, the political center of Taliban diplomacy, may have prompted his appointment.
Looking on approvingly from Russia at this courtship between China and the Taliban was international affairs expert Gevorg Mirzayan. Mirzayan believed that contrary to Western hopes, China would not play the fool and repeat the mistakes of the Soviet Union and the United States, by intervening in Afghanistan. Instead it would bet on Pashtun nationalism that regarded the presence of armed foreigners with hostility, be they Americans or Arabs. China could also count on Afghanistan's need for Chinese investment to rebuild the country.
Mirzayan's article follows below:
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Gevorg Mirzayan (Source: Ukraina.ru)
"Against the backdrop of the shameful US withdrawal from Afghanistan, American experts are asking the question, 'Who is next in line for the ‘Graveyard of Empires’?' There answer is that the Chinese will follow the Russians and Americans.
"'China’s leaders are probably the most ambitious in the world. And it will be difficult for them to turn a blind eye to Afghanistan, especially in view of the fact that the country is one of the 14 states that borders the PRC by land. China is an empire, and its imperial conquests were performed in the western lands that border Afghanistan...The temptation for the Chinese imperialists looks irresistible,' wrote Gordon Chang, an American expert on China. According to Chang and his like-minded supporters, the outcome of China's intervention in the country, will be truly catastrophic for the PRC. Beijing will leave behind its resources, people and (what’s most important for Washington) its ambitions for global dominance in the 'Afghan graveyard.'
"We will not argue about the beautiful US cravings but they are just cravings. Contrary to all the Western experts’ hopes, China is not about to emulate the Soviet and American experience and become the third empire to be buried in the 'Afghan graveyard.' 'China is a friendly neighbor of Afghanistan, and the PRC won’t change alter that role. China will respect the basic principle of noninterference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs. We will do our best to provide the necessary assistance, but we will never aspire for dominance in Afghanistan,' reads The Global Times article.
"And this is a very, very wise stance; wise, balanced, and based purely on the Chinese national interest."
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