CHINA-PAKISTAN NUCLEAR COOPERATION
China has collaborated with Pakistan on the construction of six nuclear reactors with a combined output of 3.4 gigawatts. China’s export of nuclear technology to Pakistan raises several concerns for the international community, given Pakistan's abysmal nuclear proliferation record. Pakistan also has not yet signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation treaty, and many legal scholars argue that Chinese exports of nuclear technology to Paksitan violates its commitments to the Nuclear Suppliers Group. The first two reactors China helped construct, Chashma-1 and Chashma-2, were grandfathered in at the time China joined the NSG in 2004. China made a case that the second two reactors, constructed in the late 2000s, were as well, though most experts and legal scholars found this illegitimate. The last two reactors were declared only last year and are unlikely to be the last. (India Today February 8, 2015)
INDIA, U.S. TO COOPERATE ON CARRIER TECHNOLOGY
The United States is mulling over exporting aircraft carrier technology to India. A joint statement by President Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi advanced the idea of a “working group to explore aircraft carrier technology and design." The new carrier would likely be India’s largest and would potentially utilize U.S. catapult technology. The key piece of equipment is the state-of-the-art Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS), a new type of launch mechanism that would allow India to carry a larger amount of heavier aircraft. (Reuters February 5, 2015)
SRI LANKA TO GO AHEAD WITH CHINA PORT DEAL
After intiially signaling it would cancel a port deal with China, the new Sri Lankan government under President Maithripala Sirisena now says the $1.5 billion port project may move forward after all. Sirisena promised during his campaign to scrap the deal but his government now seems to be reversing its position. The project involves the reclamation of 233 hectares of land in the capital, Colombo. China would own 20 of those hectares outright and hold 108 of them on a 99-year lease. The project is regarded as “key to the success of Chinese President Xi Jinping's mega Silk Road and Maritime Silk Road project." The move concerns India, locked in a regional power struggle with China, because of the large volume of transit cargo the passes through Colombo. (The New Indian Express February 6, 2015)
INDIA ENHANCES DEFENSES ON BORDER WITH CHINA
India is upgrading defenses on the northeastern border with China, according to Indian Defense Secretary R. K. Mathur. The improved defense infrastructure will take advantage of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles purchased from Israel. The two countries are also working together to develop the Barak 8 air and missile defense system, which will be utilized by the Indian armed forces. (The Economic Times February 7, 2015)
THOUSANDS NABBED IN PAKISTANI TERROR CRACKDOWN
Following the attack on a Peshawar school which killed 150 people, police in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province have made 13,144 arrests on suspicion of militancy. Large amounts of weapons and ammunition were also seized. The apprehensions come in the aftermath of the government-enacted National Action Plan, which gives the army and government new powers to subdue militancy in Pakistan. Additionally, the police inspected 40,129 educational institutions, arrested 2,898 Afghans living illegally in Pakistan, and searched 30,259 houses and 8,017 hotels. (Zee News India February 8, 2015)