Opinion | Time for South Asia to more closely monitor regional terrorism with global reach
- Raffaello Pantucci writes that growing regional anger must be kept from spiralling out of control and creating broader havoc
- Recent terror attacks in Kashmir, Sri Lanka and Gwadar have worrisome implications for global security
The Middle East traditionally has been seen as the cradle of terrorist threats that resonate globally; this year, however, has illustrated how a set of potential dangers exists in South Asia with the potential to ultimately wreak havoc around the world – crying out for closer monitoring.
Tensions have long been part of life in a region with a massive population, nuclear armed states, persistent geopolitical tensions, economic boom and large, globally scattered diaspora communities.
All three events were local in expression and provenance but their consequences had global repercussions: dragging regional powers into national ethnic conflicts, international problems into local contexts and nearly bringing two nuclear armed states into conflict.
The most recent incident – the Gwadar attack – was part of a pattern of activity increasingly associated with Baluchi separatists who have sought to make China and the China – Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – a collection of infrastructure projects under construction throughout Pakistan with a particular footprint in Baluchistan – the targets of their ire.
These attacks have repeatedly struck Pakistanis working on what the group identifies as CPEC projects, but have also focused on Chinese engineers and workers coming into the country.
