Pakistan & China | USSR Occupation of Afghanistan | 1980

[dexter]

This is a shortened version of the original report. Thames TV's 'TV Eye' reports from Afghanistan and Pakistan where the team obtains an exclusive interview with Pakistani President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq about the growing influence of China in the region and also how its influence is spreading to war-torn Afghanistan.
First shown: 28/02/1980

Key points to be noted in the video:

• Importance of Gwadar Port and its significance as a deep-sea warm water port for the USSR.
• Construction of Karakoram Highway
• Chinese assistance to Pakistan in terms of infrastructure and military development
• The incursion of Afghan refugees in Pakistan

The striking similarities between the geopolitics of Pakistan after 40 years are still the same. Both China and Pakistan have now much stronger relations due to these earlier developments as well as the current projects like Gwadar port and CPEC. Moreover, both maintain the same approach in Afghanistan as it was in the 1980s.