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“Pakistan is committed to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). No port or any other national asset were offered to the US,” said sources
In PoK, grievances have long been of two kinds: the political/institutional and the socio-economic. (AP File)
A top Pakistani security official, while speaking to News18, rubbished a Financial Times’ Friday report that advisers to Pakistani army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir have approached U.S. officials with an offer to build and run a port on the Arabian Sea.
Citing a plan seen by the newspaper, the FT had said that it envisages American investors building and operating a terminal to access Pakistan’s critical minerals in the town of Pasni, according to the FT. Pasni is a port town in Gwadar District in the province of Balochistan, which borders Afghanistan and Iran
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“The FT story has flaws and is based on speculation. No port near Gwadar has been offered to someone else. China is more important than anyone else,” sources told News18.
The CPEC
“Pakistan is committed to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). No port or any other national asset were offered to the US. Pakistan is working on its mineral and investments policies, which will made public. No draft of the policy has been finalised yet,” sources said.
The CPEC was launched in 2013 to improve Pakistan’s road, rail and energy transportation infrastructure, besides connecting Pakistan’s Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea with northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The CPEC is part of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The major CPEC projects underway are Bostan Industrial Zone (SEZ) near Quetta, Balochistan; Chaman district of Balochistan bordering with Afghanistan; Gwadar Port, Specially Zone-I & Zone-II; some patrolling units on CPEC’s western alignment which covers hostile areas of Balochistan like Awaran, Khuzdar, Hoshab and Turbat areas; Mohmand Marble City (SEZ) near Mohmand Agency bordering with Afghanistan and Sost Dry-Port & Moqpondass Special Economic Zone Gilgit-Baltistan.
‘Mining policy in the works’
Islamabad is making a policy specifically for mining, they added.
Munir recently made a presentation to US President Donald Trump’s administration officials. He physically displayed mineral samples which was an unprecedented act that bypassed both Pakistan’s Foreign Office and civilian ministries. Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, who was also present, was seen standing with a smile. Sharif described Trump as a “man of peace” for his “sincere efforts” to end conflicts around the globe, according to a statement from his office.
Several Pakistani parliamentarians even raised objections to the secrecy of the MoU with US Strategic Metals (USSM). They alleged that the Army was misusing economic sovereignty and doing violation of the 18th Amendment which reserves mineral rights to provinces.
About the Author
Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18
Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18
October 06, 2025, 19:36 IST
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