Opinion | The Price Of ‘Iron Brotherhood’: Pakistan’s Growing Debt To China

While China is still the ‘Iron Brother’, the friendship now feels less like a romantic poetry book and more like a high-interest, overdue EMI invoice.

It was supposed to be a match made in geopolitical heaven. Pakistan and China called each other “Iron Brother", a unique, affectionate term for the “all-weather strategic and cooperative partnership." China promised to be the sugar daddy of infrastructure, and Pakistan, with a stunning coastline, promised to be the loyal, all-weather friend. The slogans were catchy: “Higher than the mountains, deeper than the oceans, sweeter than honey."

Fast forward to 2026, and Pakistan is finding that it’s the repayment instalments that are actually higher than the mountains, the honey has turned into a rather expensive, imported artificial sweetener, and the “Iron Brother" seems to be charging a hefty premium for the “iron" part.

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The relationship with China is indispensable for Pakistan. It provides military hardware and diplomatic backing that money cannot buy — mostly because Pakistan has no money left. However, the cost of being “all-weather" friends has become, frankly, quite exhausting.

Here is how Pakistan’s “all-weather" romance with Beijing is costing it heavily.

The CPEC ‘Gift’ That Keeps Taking

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is essentially a masterclass in “what’s mine is mine, and what’s yours is also mine." While Pakistan was sold a “game-changer," China walked away with the actual game, the stadium, and the broadcasting rights.

For Beijing, the corridor is a brilliant strategic shortcut that solves their “Malacca Dilemma", bypassing risky sea lanes to get oil directly to Xinjiang. It’s like a friend offering to build a massive highway through your backyard so they can get to work faster, then handing you the bill for the asphalt — and charging you a toll every time you try to cross it to get to your own mailbox. At this point, the “Economic Corridor" looks less like a bridge to prosperity........

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