Xinjiang: As an internal source of China's foreign policy towards Central Asia.

Introduction

Many global powers are still holding on to the approach of China as a “Rising power” while China has every reason to believe that it has already raised itself to the top in the global race to become Global Power if not the Superpower yet.  The global Politics is once again reshaping itself in 21^st century with China’s growing influence which is challenging USA hegemon.  Beginning with its entry into the World Trade Organization in December 2001, China rapidly transformed its economy from a low-cost “factory to the world” to a global leader in advanced technologies [1]. This quite rise of Beijing as several scholar describe it is a successful coordination between its domestic and Foreign Policy. The changing domestic need from time to time has also governed its attitude towards its neighbour and siding with different states in International System, especially after economic reform in 1970s under Deng Xiaoping.  The challenges of 1970s China and 2021 China is very different but yet the Foreign Policy approach taken long back can be seen favouring several recent internal developments like Energy security crisis. The paper focuses role Xinjiang on shaping China’s foreign Policy towards Central Asia. Xinjiang Autonomous Region is the only area which shares border with energy rich (particularly Hydrocarbon) Central Asia.  The Central Asia region (CA) comprises the countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Location of Afghanistan has been debatable, whether to include it in Central Asia or South Asia (it being part of SAARC) but the region has been included in the paper for its share border with Xinjiang province. The article talks about inter challenges posed by Xinjiang, China’s own domestic need for CA, economic and security aspects of the policies adopted by People’s Republic of China (PRC).

Drivers of China’s foreign policies.

Year 2022 will mark end of China’s 14^th Five Year Plan and end of Xi Jinping’s second term. The last 19^th Party Congress in October 2017, China acknowledged the prospect of a better future which will accompanied by severe challenges [2]. The institutional stability with the CCP, despite some difference in the recent years, has been one of the fundamental reasons for China’s success in achieving global goals. These goals that Beijing dreams to concur faces major challenges from the ethnic and religious difference in Xinjiang and Tibet province. Xinjiang in 2009 erupted into ethnic violence between Uyghur Muslim and Han Chinese. Uyghur being Muslim minority occupy a very significant province which is of great geo-strategic importance to China. The Xinjiang Autonomous region is China’s access to Central Asian countries. This landlock province shares border with Magnolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Keeping the region as centre point towards its foreign policy to Central Asia is important from economic, security and strategic point of view.

The Economic reform in 1970s by Deng Xiaoping took the country out from isolation and opened the vision for modernisation to take China out of its domestic challenges. This approach also meant temporary dependency on USA after breaking away soviet influence. The cooperation between two ideologically driven States was short lived and now Beijing was in need of new partners to cope up with its fast growth. Cooperation with immediate neighbour was kept as a top priority after the cold war as USA was no more and immediate security threat anymore though both continued to remain on the opposite side of the table. The export-based economy of China needed a good image in the international market for it, the State needed to assure its neighbour that it has come out from its old radical ways of solving international grievances under Mao but now has transformed its vision to a peaceful rise, development and harmony with its neighbour[3]. The quest for modernisation and development was met with increasing industrialization for domestic production but on the flip side it increasingly got dependent on energy resources like oil. The Central Asian country has caught eye of Beijing for its potential to full fill China’s increases energy needs. Xinjiang is the interactive point with central Asia, hence this north province important for mainland China for the challenges it poses and beneficial opportunity it opens up for it.

Xinjiang as an internal security issue

The population composition is the first challenge to China’s internal security. The major clash between Han Chinese and Uyghur Muslim in 2009 was the major highlight though the rise of Uyghur Nationalism cannot be stated as a new issue. This Multi-ethnic province, just like Tibet, do not consider PRC as the legitimate authority in the region[4]. The territorial dispute with the Central Asian countries was undoubtable settled peacefully by Beijing but the process of territorialisation remains incomplete until population resolves to integration with the mainland China. Uyghur make almost 47% of the population, but compared to the census of 2010, the Han Chinese population in the region grew by 25% as compared to Uyghur population which only grew by 16%, which is the result of encouragement provided by migration to border Beijing’s Policy to Han Chinese. The region future occupies one-sixth of china’s land but is dominated by Minority, unrest in this region can make China Vulnerable to outside forces.

The Xinjiang province is located on the silk route, over the centuries it has act as a facilitator of trade, cultural or communication exchange between West and East. The Uyghurs moreover identify themselves culturally, religiously and ethnically closer to Central Asia. It was in 1949 that china retained full control of Xinjiang Autonomous region. Uyghur Nationalism can be traced back to 1865. Also, Uyghurs twice achieved brief statehood; one from 1931 to 1934 with the establishment of “Turkish-Islamic Republic of Eastern Turkestan” and another from 1944 to 1949 with the creation of the “East Turkestan Republic”. This brief experience of statehood in fact, produced a kind of protonational identity[5]. The historical claim China and Xinjiang are in dispute with each other, bring different identity under one Chinese identity still remain major challenge for China. China has been internally struggling with Uyghur Separatist movement and had blamed separatist living outside in exile or as a refugee of inciting violence in the region including allegation of working with terrorist organisation. Further the terrorist group in Afghanistan, which shares a 1,480-mile border with Central Asia, can easily infiltrate China through its Xinjiang area. These Islamist group may get support from Uyghur community in the region.

Xinjiang: China’s crossroad to Central Asia 

The region is centre of Domestic Gas production and network of pipelines stretching towards gas rich central Asia (Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan). The instability or any type of attack in the region will not only threaten China’s security but also damage several infrastructures that China has built in the region to secure its energy supply. The direct repercussion will on China’s export-based economy which is in need of energy resources. According to recent reports China’s 32,800km (20,381-mile) expansion of its oil and gas pipeline is the highest in the world. PipeChina, known formally as China Oil and Gas Pipeline Network, will soon become the largest builder of gas pipelines in the world, according to Global Energy Monitor [6]. Recently, China daily reported that the western segment of the third West-to-East pipeline project runs from Horgos in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to Zhongwei, and the eastern part runs from Ji'an to Fuzhou, Fujian province by PipeChina will start soon to connect the western part to eastern part of China [7]. This major investment to connect central Asia with rest of the China will only sustain if the region is free from any internal security threat. Further, it is important to note that China’s interest in getting energy resources from Central Asia and Russia is its primary goal because of the cost efficiency of pipelines along with safety of transport of Natural gas as compared to the sea route. Added to this already network of supply lines the Xinjiang province is also the holder of major ports through which China conducts Global Trade.

China has provided Central Asia with adequate non-refundable funding for infrastructural development most of the central Asian Countries aren’t economically strong despite being rich in energy resources. It is one thing to have resources and another thing to have adequate infrastructure for its adequate utilisation. This vacuum is being filled by China in the region. China has always used the concept of dependency for its own advantage. It has converted its own energy requirement to its benefit by investing in Central Asia and making them economically dependent on itself to a large extend. Not only does it help these states these Muslim Countries to develop but also keep them silent on China’s policy towards Xinjiang and Uyghur minority which China states are measures to curb terrorism. Even Washington has tried to use Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan Uighur diaspora, against China but has failed to large extent (Al Jazeera). China to secure its periphery has made Central Asia tied to it through trade hence eliminating any possibility of them becoming safe haven for Uyghur Refugees or activist, whom Beijing calls terrorist.

BRI: Belt and Road Initiative

China’s quest to revive the ancient Silk Road is a well-known reality. It intends to achieve it through cooperation from 130 countries. The project was inaugurated in 2013 in Kazakhstan. Through this initiative it will successfully connect China and Europe via land and water. The countries part of this development will attract massive investment from China. Despite the question of threat to sovereignty in this venture, Central Asian countries are keen to support China in every way possible for it to succeed. One of the reasons for this unfathomable support is the failure of countries, who were previously part of Former Soviet Union, to entirely re-establish their economy [8]. Xinjiang for China is the gateway to BRI. The Urumqi International Land Port in Xinjiang’s Capital city has been constructed to integrate rail, road and flight logistic hub to facilitate trade not only with its neighbours but Europe via China- Europe Railway Express [9]. Nevertheless, one can’t deny the fact that Central Asia is the main beneficiary for the project. China also shares border with Afghanistan and Pakistan who in turn share border with China’s Central Asian neighbours, both countries are known for their instable political natural. China have had good relationship with Pakistan despite it being alleged to be safe haven of several terrorist outlets but backing Pakistan only works in favour of China. It has again used its dependency card by actively investing in Pakistan, this simple strategy helps to keep groups which may have support from the state from entering China through Xinjiang. The same approach is now being followed to tackle developments in Afghanistan, which shares 76 km border with China. The volatility in the region can have spill over in the Xinjiang province, hence China was among the first States in the international system to engage with Taliban after its takeover. According to Reuters report on October 25, 2021, China has promised aid to the neighbouring country, while demanding the Taliban crack down on the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, a group Beijing says threatens stability in the western region of Xinjiang. Beijing has also expressed a possible extension of BRI to Afghanistan, which is a major gain for newly Formed Taliban regime, which is eager for foreign investment to rebuild Afghanistan.

 Conclusion

China has invested heavily in Xinjiang because of its geostrategic location. The location itself is vital for China’s economic acceleration. Any Obstruction in Xinjiang Autonomous region will mean a major halt to growing pace of development. China’s economy is highly dependent on industrial production, this requires massive energy supply. China’s has for long seen central Asia has its major ally to satisfy its requirement but establishing relation with them isn’t as much of a problem as controlling Xinjiang separatist movement is for internal security of the State. Any upheaval in this region may ruin all the investment China has done in Xinjiang itself and Central Asia. China’s policy towards Uyghur Muslim have been criticized by the international community despite this it has managed to in good books of Central Asian countries with sizeable Uyghur diaspora. By taking Xinjiang as a reference point towards its policy to Central Asia not only has it successfully found a market to survive its energy requirement but also closed the gates of any interference from this neighbouring Muslim countries in its affair to tackle Separatist movement by Uyghur.

 

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[1] The Editors (Monday Oct. 25, 2021), How a Rising China Has Remade Global Politics, World Politics Review,

[2] Ben Lowsen (November 14^th, 2017) the 19^th party conference and its implication for PLA, The Diplomat.

[3] Robert G. Sutter (2010) China’s ‘backyard’ Relations with the Korean Peninsula and Southeast Asia.

[4] Abanti Bhattacharya (2003) Conceptualising Uyghur Separatism in Chinese Nationalism, IDSA monthly Journal

[5] ANI ( JUNE 15,2021) Population growth of Han faster than ethnic minority Uygur in China's Xinjiang,

[6] , By Mohammed Hussein (16 Dec 202116 Dec 2021), Mapping the world’s oil and gas pipelines, Aljazeera, 

[7](23/9/2021), PipeChina begins construction on gas pipeline segment, Chinadaily.com.cn

[8] Roza Nurgozhayeva (July 09, 2020), How is China’s Belt and Road changing Central Asia, The Diplomat.

[9] Abhishek G Bhaya (Aug 16, 2021), Xinjiang: A Gateway to China's Belt and Road Initiative.