Speaking against China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), United States Defence Secretary James Mattis on Saturday termed the project as controversial. US Defence Secretary James Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee that a part of One Belt One Road project passes through 'disputed territory'. He clarified that US openly opposes this project.
In a globalised world, there were many belts and many roads and no nation should dictate One Belt, One Road project, he added. The secretary further said that common grounds should be found with China to thwart terrorism. "As far as Afghanistan goes, as we try to separate out variables where, in some areas, we work with China, for example, terrorism, I think there are areas where we can work find common ground with China when it comes to counterterrorism, and we should exercise those areas pretty fully," said the US defence chief.
The recent stance of US on CPEC will further hostile the relations that are already strained due to President Donald Trump's speech on August 21 who announced new policy for South Asia and blamed Pakistan for providing safe havens to terrorists. Trump also lauded the role of India in Afghanistan, ignoring Islamabad's concerns.
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