CPEC will escalate tension in Kashmir says UN report

"The dispute over Kashmir is also of concern, since the crossing of the CPEC in the region."

There is a chance of geo-political tension and the same may be ignited further due to the $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) traversing through PoK, a United Nations report has warned.

The report released by the UN's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) said that the project could also fuel separatist movement in Pakistan's Balochistan province.

"The dispute over Kashmir is also of concern, since the crossing of the CPEC in the region might create geo-political tension with India and ignite further political instability," said the report on China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

"Afghanistan's political instability could also limit the potential benefits of transit corridors to population centres near Kabul or Kandahar, as those routes traverse southern and eastern Afghanistan where the Taliban are most active," the report said.

According to the report, while the CPEC could serve as the "driver for trade and economic integration" between China, Pakistan, Iran, India, Afghanistan and the Central Asian states, it could also cause many problems within Pakistan and reignite separatist movement in the country due to opposition in Balochistan.

"However, social and environmental safeguards are a concern. The CPEC could lead to widespread displacement of local communities. In Balochistan, there are concerns that migrants from other regions of Pakistan will render ethnic Baloch a minority in the province," the UN report on CPEC also said.

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