M. M. ALAM
ISLAMABAD: Senators paid heed to the apprehension in various circles that the way state of affairs are unfolding vis-à-vis CPEC it seems that China was colonizing Pakistan.
Senate’s Standing Committee on Planning & Development manifested their trepidation apropos the project here on Tuesday (28 February).
The Committee urging the government to have everything in black and white held that if the country’s interests were not safeguarded CPEC could build or ruin Pakistan.
Senators observing that it was not clear what Pakistan would get once economic activities commenced, stressed on forming a panel of national and international experts to ponder over various aspects of CPEC.
PIECE PUBLISHED EARLIER
(Video & Text) Superficially CPEC appears to be a China-Centric Project, but Pakistan will get side benefits: French Scholar
M. M. ALAM
KARACHI: Jean François de Meglio, President of Paris-based think tank ASIA CENTER, has delivered a lecture on the economic, strategic, environmental consequences of the New Silk Roads here at French Cultural Center (Alliance Française).
Responding to a query about the impact of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on local businesses, he maintained that superficially it looked self-interested.
But he hastily added that there would be side-benefits for Pakistan as the project could not be executed in a hermetically sealed environment.
Answering to another query apropos impact of China’s obsession with energy security and its signing contracts with Russia on CPEC, he pointed out that a decade ago China was an energy freak.
Energy security was excessively on the leaders’ minds. But when the oil lobbyists were set-aside, China realized that was good to diversify.
He pointed out that CPEC was a small component of the Chinese mega Silk Roads project that involves many routes through Central and South East Asia.
He noted that Silk Roads would redefine the global geo-politics and its results will be seen in medium or long term. 
