In the Chinese block on Masood Azhar, there is more than what meets the eye

New Delhi, Mar 14: For the fourth time, China has stood in the way of Jaish-e-Mohammad chief, Masood Azhar being declared a global terrorist by the UN Security council.

Azhar is accused of several deadly terror attacks that include the ones at Parliament, Pathankot, Uri, Nagrota and Pulwama.

China, being a veto-wielding permanent member of the UN Security Council, has repeatedly blocked India's move. The US, Britain and France all back India to designate Masood Azhar a terrorist under the Al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.

India has always faced the Chinese block when it came to Azhar. This is not the first time that China has said that it will not support the ban. While on one hand, it continues to block the ban at the behest of Pakistan, on the other side it has its own vested interests.

Officials explain to OneIndia that it is not just bi-lateral. China has called Pakistan an all weather friend, while Azhar the man himself has called China the almighty. Apart from these aspects and the fact that Azhar guards China's assets in Pakistan it is also to ensure that India does not become supreme in the region.

China would not like India having its say in the UN. China has also been instrumental in blocking India's NSG bid several times. It is a case of being supreme and throwing its clout around says an informed officer in New Delhi. The officer says that although all nations say it openly that the war against terror is important, the fact of the matter is that all are divided in their approach. There are different equations at play.

The stakes in Afghanistan are very high. Russian President Vladimir Putin in fact changed the country's long standing policy against the US in Afghanistan. US was able to take over Afghanistan after Putin allowed the US set up base in Central Asia. China too has a major stake in Afghanistan and the recent statement by the Taliban in which it said it would not target infrastructure projects in Afghanistan is also significant. China has high stakes in Afghanistan and would not want that to be disturbed.

Any move in the UN on Azhar is likely to change China's equation with the Taliban which is considered to be close to the Jaish-e-Mohammad boss. More control in the UN for India would also tilt the balance against China. Officials explain that the reason for the block goes beyond the all weather friend or Azhar playing bouncer for Chinese investments in Pakistan. It is all about supremacy in the region, the officer also explains.