Escalating militant violence targeting Chinese infrastructure projects and personnel in Pakistan’s Balochistan province is severely straining the “Iron Brother” alliance between Beijing and Islamabad, prompting both nations to consider unprecedented joint security measures to protect billions in investments.

Beijing has poured roughly $65 billion into the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) since its launch in 2015. Billed as a crucial component of China’s global Belt and Road Initiative, CPEC encompasses energy generation, mineral extraction, and sweeping infrastructure development. However, these ambitions are colliding with a decades-long insurgency in Balochistan, a resource-rich province bordering both Iran and Afghanistan, where ethnic Baluch militants have historically targeted railways, electricity towers, and gas pipelines.

Violence in the region has spiked sharply in recent years, with Chinese interests becoming a primary target. During the first six months of this year, the armed separatist group known as the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) executed over 100 attacks on foreign investment projects, as well as paramilitary, military, and police personnel.

In this month alone, Baluch attacks have claimed the lives of at least 42 Pakistani military and police personnel. The aggression was underscored by a high-profile operation in March, when the BLA hijacked the Jaffar Express train and held hundreds of passengers hostage.

Islamabad has long accused archrival India and the neighboring Taliban regime in Afghanistan of backing these border-region militant groups. However, analysts maintain that the turmoil is primarily rooted in historical local grievances. Militants fighting for an independent Balochistan accuse both the Pakistani government and Beijing of exploiting the region’s vast natural wealth.

Despite being Pakistan’s largest province by landmass—and boasting immense strategic value due to its land borders with Afghanistan and Iran, as well as its access to the Strait of Hormuz via Gwadar Port—Balochistan remains the nation’s most impoverished and underdeveloped territory.

The BLA has explicitly warned China against continuing its operations. In a 2019 video message directed at Chinese President Xi Jinping, the separatist group declared: “You still have time to quit Balochistan,” threatening violent reprisals “you will never forget.”

Those threats have materialized into a series of deadly assaults claimed largely by the BLA or affiliated factions. In July 2021, a suicide bomber struck a bus transporting workers to the Dasu hydropower project in northwestern Pakistan, killing 13 people, including nine Chinese workers and engineers. The tragedy forced Beijing to temporarily withdraw its project personnel. The following year, in April 2022, a female suicide bomber killed three Chinese nationals at the University of Karachi’s Confucius Institute.

The bloodshed continued into 2024. A March suicide attack on the Karakoram Highway killed five Chinese nationals employed at the Dasu Dam project. Seven months later, in October, a vehicle-borne explosive detonated near a high-security zone around Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport, leaving two Chinese citizens dead and several others wounded. Most recently, in February 2025, a roadside bomb struck a convoy tied to the Chinese-operated Saindak copper and gold mine. The blast injured eight people, comprising six Pakistani security personnel and two individuals whose identities were not disclosed.

Following frequent protests from Beijing over the safety of its citizens, Pakistani authorities have implemented multilayered security protocols across Balochistan. Concurrently, China is reportedly evaluating the deployment of its own security personnel to the region to protect its assets and workforce.

Top-level diplomacy reflects the mounting urgency. During a July 16 meeting in Shanghai, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar agreed to jointly “consolidate counterterrorism security guarantees” to protect their shared interests. Just days earlier at the United Nations in New York, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met with Chinese Deputy Minister of Public Security Ling Zhifeng. Naqvi stated that Islamabad seeks to take “security cooperation with China to the next level” by forming a Special Protection Police Force dedicated to guarding Chinese projects and citizens.

At the center of these security anxieties is CPEC’s flagship endeavor: the development of Gwadar. Launched with massive fanfare in 2015, the broader CPEC initiative focuses on building railway lines and roads, advancing agriculture projects, generating energy, and creating special economic zones to spur export-driven industries.

However, Gwadar remains the program’s strategic focal point and is widely considered the crown jewel of CPEC. Situated just 180 nautical miles from the Strait of Hormuz, the deep-sea port grants China a highly coveted, shorter route to the Arabian Sea. The comprehensive Gwadar development includes the deep seaport itself, specialized economic zones, connecting roadways, and public welfare projects. Once envisioned to become “Pakistan’s Dubai,” the coastal city recently celebrated a major milestone in 2025 when China inaugurated Pakistan’s largest airport there, a facility built at a cost of roughly $230 million.