Securing China's Border: Khunjerab Pass: Safeguarding China-Pakistan Economic Corridor

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We now continue our special series "The Big Picture". Today, we focus on border security. China' extensive borders pose a challenge in protecting its sovereignty, which is key to economic growth. The China-India standoff in September demonstrated just how big the challenge can be. Border security is important for all countries. CGTN correspondents Han Bin and Daniel Khan went to see this on their respective sides of the China-Pakistan border. We start with Han Bin, who went to the Khunjerab Pass, a key strategic point in northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

High in the Pamir Mountains, Janidin Jomajan's family lives in the closest Chinese village to the border with Pakistan.

"I love the snowy mountains and green grassland. I feel life is happy living in such a beautiful natural place."

Like many herdsmen in the village, they graze livestock on the pasture and help protect the border. Their familiarity with the environment allows them to observe movement and changes. The family is grateful that the China-Pakistan border enjoys stable peace.

JANIDIN JOMAJAN, HERDSMAN KHUNJERAB PASS BORDER GUARD "Starting from my father, my family has been helping the People's Liberation Army soldiers on border security. We've experienced extreme cold and heat. We are honored to help them."

15 border soldiers now serve at this outpost. Facilities and equipment have been improved over the years. The soldiers guard the Khunjerab Pass, the highest paved international border crossing in the world.

LT. JIAO DONGTAO KHUNJERAB PASS, XINJIANG "The snow was so thick in winter that the car couldn't come up. Every morning the soldiers had to walk so hard to reach the outpost. Changing the guard took great effort."

Jiao Dongtao and his fellow soldiers know the path of duty. They're in charge of only 5 kilometers, but it's a crucial 5 kilometers. It's been reported that some terrorists who plotted attacks in Xinjiang were trained in other countries, and were trying to infiltrate through Khunjerab.

LT. JIAO DONGTAO KHUNJERAB PASS, XINJIANG "We take border security very seriously. Our company has adopted a series of measures, including extension of patrol time, increasing the number of border guards, and using herdsmen as border guards, as well as joint patrols with Pakistani soldiers. All these are to guarantee border security and stability."

HAN BIN KHUNJERAB PASS, XINJIANG "The Tajiks live in relative isolation in the Pamir Mountain range of west China, bordering Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan. They have long held a tradition to protect the borders. The local herdsmen have also become border guards."

Janidin Jomajan helps the outpost inspections several hours a day. His main responsibility is to watch for anything or anyone suspicious. The Khunjerab Pass has seen China-Pakistan relations strengthened through the Economic Corridor. This key section of the Korakorum Highway links China's western frontier with Pakistan's naval base at Gawadar.

JANIDIN JOMAJAN, HERDSMAN KHUNJERAB PASS BORDER GUARD "The soldiers leave their own hometowns to protect the border. I want to protect my homeland together with them."

LT. JIAO DONGTAO KHUNJERAB PASS, XINJIANG "I hope we can always see peace at the Khunjerab Pass. And let our motherland and people rest assured."

Jiao Dongtao believes security becomes even more important when the area is opened up to trade.

DANIAL KHAN HARIPUR, PAKISTAN Just as my colleague Han Bin reports on the other side of the Khunjerab Pass, border security is boosting trade and stability, Pakistan continues to promote opening up along its borders with China, believing a long term cooperation strategy goes beyond a trade initiative. These trade links are already transforming border towns, just like Sust, and benefiting the people living here.

According to the South Asia terrorism portal, over 62000 people have been killed in Pakistan since 2003, in the so-called war against terror.

And until recently, some restive areas presented Pakistan as one of the most dangerous countries in the world.

The northwestern tribal areas were plagued by the Taliban. And terrorism had even reached Pakistan's largest city, Karachi.

BUT, in the last five years, the number of such incidents have significantly fallen, owing mainly to several military operations.

And with the arrival of the multi-billion-dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor, security has further improved.

Only recently an international cricket match was held at Miranshah in the Pak-Afghan border tribal agency of north Waziristan, as a testament, that the most hostile of areas in the country have been cleared of militants.

MAJOR GENERAL ASIF GHAFOOR PAKISTAN ARMED FORCES SPOKESMAN "The trajectory in which Pakistan is now moving, I'm sure the CPEC coming up, we are moving towards our destiny of peace and prosperity, and as regards to the security of CPEC, Pakistan security forces have taken on this responsibility given by the government and we shall do it to the best of our abilities."

Observers say, violence has dropped by three quarters in the last two years. And now Pakistan is safer 16 years after the US launched its war on terror.

DANIAL KHAN KAGHAN, PAKISTAN "To address security concerns, the Pakistan army has raised a fifteen-thousand-man-strong special security division, which consists of nine army battalions and six civil security wings, to look after the security of CPEC-related projects all across Pakistan. "

The Suki Kinari hydropower plant in the northwest, is part of the Corridor's "Early Harvest" projects by China's Gezhouba Group. The Chinese workforce numbers in the hundreds.

DENG SIWEN, PROJECT MANAGER CHINA GEZHOUBA GROUP COMPANY "I will say only one thing, security is absolutely no problem for us. because we believe that we have good protection from the Pakistan army."

At Khunjerab Pass, on the border with China, trade activity has already begun.

DANIAL KHAN KHUNJERAB PASS, PAKISTAN "Though the Pakistan army is providing complete security at the Khunjerab pass, at the Pak-China border, the special force of the Gilgit Baltistan police is providing security to transporters, carrying goods to and from China at the Karakoram highway."

The CPEC patrolling police have 500 personnel and 25 vehicles.

TANWEER UL HASAN, ASST. INSPECTOR GENERAL CENTRAL POLICE OFFICE, GILGIT-BALTISTAN "CPEC being a strategically important project, and a game changer project for the prosperity of Pakistan is very important but the hostile countries are active against this project, but law enforcement agencies, the GB police and the government are very much vigilant to thwart the nefarious intentions."

And so far they have succeeded. During the times of militancy, the tourism industry was affected, but now, tourism has returned to the region. And Pakistan has already started fencing its 2600-kilometer border with Afghanistan in an effort to stop infiltration of terrorists.

DANIAL KHAN TORKHAM, PAKISTAN-AFGHANISTAN BORDER Before the border management policy was put in place, there was a free movement at the Torkham border of at least forty to forty five thousand people, but after the national action plan has been implemented, the movement has been restricted significantly.

A measure, experts believe was long in coming, that will further secure the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, in the years to come. Danial Khan, CGTN, Khunjerab Pass, Pak-China Border.