“Pak-China friendship is higher than the Himalayas, deeper than the ocean, sweeter than honey, and stronger than steel.” PM Shehbaz Sharif

“Pak-China friendship is higher than the Himalayas, deeper than the ocean, sweeter than honey, and stronger than steel.”

The “all-weather” friendship between China and Pakistan, which we witness now, has emerged after facing serious ups and downs throughout the course of history. It was not as simple as we think now that soon after the emergence of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Pakistan recognized the country, and since then, their ironclad relation started. Rather, the historical facts posit something quite opposite. Sino-Pakistan rapprochement in the Ayub Khan era clearly illustrated that prior to this, the relations were politically strained. Therefore, it is important to critically analyze the basis of current friendly relations between China and Pakistan. What was the rationale behind this friendly policy followed by both countries and its implications for their future relationship?

Dawn of Diplomatic Ties

While the Pakistani government was dealing with domestic problems during the 1950s, Pakistan’s political relations with China were not good. Pakistan was caught in a dilemma over the recognition of the PRC. Firstly, the two had ideological disagreements, with Pakistan siding with the capitalist alliance. Secondly, both nations were nearly ignorant of one another’s existence. It was challenging to recognize an unknown country since there were no government officials familiar with Chinese. Thus, Pakistan was attempting to stay out of major power politics by avoiding giving full support to any one party.

Finally, as the United States did not recognize China, the Pakistani government was unable to jeopardize its relationship with the West. Nevertheless, Pakistan became the first Muslim nation to recognize communist China in 1951. Despite the serious obstacles, Pakistan acknowledged China on the condition that China would support Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) after China got the United Nations’ seat and veto power.

According to Farhat Mahmud in his book “A History of US-Pakistan Relations” published in 1991, Field Marshal Ayub Khan came into power in Pakistan through a military coup in 1958, and he then entered into a defense........

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