India once again opposes China's Belt and Road Initiative at SCO Summit

NewsBharati    05-Jul-2023 11:12:02 AM
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New Delhi, July 04: At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, India refused to support China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) at the declaration issued at the end of the SCO, becoming the only country to not support the project.
  
India once again opposes China's Belt and Road Initiative in SCO joint statement
Though the infrastructure project was endorsed by Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, the final declaration did not feature India’s name.
 
"Reaffirming their support for China's 'Belt and Road Initiative' (BRI) initiative, the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Russian Federation, Republic of Tajikistan and Republic of Uzbekistan note the ongoing work to jointly implement this project, including efforts to link the construction of the Eurasian Economic Union and BRI," the declaration read.
"They spoke in favour of implementing the Roadmap for a gradual increase in the share of national currencies in mutual settlements by the interested member States," it added.
 
On earlier occasions as well, India did not endorse the BRI initiative, while other member countries were supportive of it.
 

Why India opposes BRI?

 
One of the major reasons why India doesn’t support BRI is because one of the parts of the project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), passes through the Indian territories occupied illegally by Pakistan.
 
The arm of the BRI project that links mainland China to the Arabian Sea runs from Kashgar in China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region to Gwadar Port in southwestern Baluchistan in Pakistan. The project enters Indian territory occupied by Pakistan in Gilgit Baltistan and traverses the entire length of Pakistan from north to south before reaching the Arabian Sea.