By Faeez Juneja
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Abstract
In 2015, President Xi Jinping announced the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) as part of the Brick Road Initiative to foster strong bilateral relations between Pakistan and China. This paper will examine the progress made on the CPEC projects and aims to probe its feasibility, challenges, political developments, and economic impacts. In the end, it intends to explore the implications of CPEC for the overall Brick Road Initiative, Indo-Pacific region, and broader international political economy. Findings include that CPEC has accomplished less than half of its intended projects and has created negative short-term economic and political impacts on Pakistan through increased debt, corruption, military power, increased human rights abuses, and rise in insurgency. Furthermore, China has largely accomplished its geopolitical goal to create a foothold in South Asia and created a precedent to expand its Brick Road Initiative while strengthening its power over Pakistan.
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