On Sunday, Pakistani security forces killed two militants after an attack on a Chinese convoy in Balochistan.
The separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) claimed responsibility for the attack on vehicles carrying 23 Chinese engineers in the province's southern coastal city of Gwadar, where China is building a seaport.
According to local police, all members of the Chinese convoy and security officials involved in the exchange of fire remained unharmed.
Following the attack, the media wing of Pakistan’s military issued a statement saying an operation had been launched after the presence of terrorists in the area was confirmed.
According to one report, Baloch separatist groups and Islamist extremists are trying hard to dent China's efforts to access the rich mineral resources in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Sputnik India reached out to a security analyst to discuss the rising terror threat to Chinese nationals in Pakistan amid the launch of CPEC's second phase.
Director of the UK-based Midstone Centre for International Affairs, Faran Jaffery told Sputnik India that it is quite unlikely that Pakistan will be able to reap maximum benefit from CPEC in the near future.
"Not only Pakistan lacks skilled specialists to handle the second phase efficiently, but there are also far bigger problems like the rising terrorism threat in the country, especially in Balochistan", the director said.
The Chinese Consulate General in Karachi issued a safety warning asking all Chinese nationals in Pakistan to stay vigilant following the violent attack. Baloch separatist groups have previously also carried out attacks on China-linked development projects in the region.
This year there have been discussions to include Afghanistan in the infrastructure project as well in order to make it a transit hub between Central and South Asia.
Earlier this month, Pakistan and China celebrated the 10-year-anniversary of CPEC and announced the launch of its second phase. China's Vice Premier He Lifeng travelled to Islamabad, where he met ex-Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to commemorate 10 years of the multibillion project.
It was reported that the two sides signed at least six new documents as China and Pakistan begin the second phase of CPEC.
Joint ventures between China and Pakistan to counter the climate change threat are on the agenda, as is the aim of poverty reduction through agricultural and industrial cooperation.
Moreover, the second phase is set to focus on socio-economic development across Pakistan through engagement of agricultural expansion, improvement of the tourism industry, as well as building technical educational and healthcare facilities.
In order to educate and guide such specialists, China sends its own teams of engineers and skilled labour to work in Pakistan; however, the targeted attacks on Chinese nationals create a sense of fear amongst people, putting a damper on the much anticipated projects.
"Pakistan has already seen several terrorist attacks targeting Chinese nationals in the country, and there is no indication that this trend is going to end anytime soon", Jaffery added.
Political Instability in Pakistan is Matter of Concern for CPEC
Even before CPEC was announced, Baloch separatists were already waging a war against the Pakistani establishment, with Pakistan’s security forces often having to carry out anti-terror missions to combat the threat.
Jaffery told Sputnik India that political instability in Pakistan is also putting a damper on the CPEC projects.
"The political instability in Pakistan and Pakistan's reliance on US and Western institutions when it comes to aid and loan packages, which come with official and unofficial strings attached are also a matter of concern for the CPEC projects", the analyst concluded.