ISLAMABAD: China has announced the closure of the consular section of its embassy in Islamabad for an indefinite period citing “technical issues” as the reason.
The Chinese government has also advised its citizens to be extremely cautious while in Pakistan due to threats to their lives.
In a notice on its website, the Chinese embassy shared no specific information about the nature of the “issues” nor was a timeline provided about the reopening of the “temporarily” closed consular section.
“The consular section of the Chinese embassy in Islamabad will be temporarily closed from February 13, 2023 until further notice due to technical issues,” reads the notice, adding the closure would remain in place until further orders.
The notice gave no reason for the suspension of the service but growing insecurity against Chinese nationals apparently seems to be one of the factors.
On Saturday, the Chinese foreign affairs ministry’s consular department had warned its citizens that they may be at risk of high levels of security in Pakistan. Beijing’s warning to its citizens had come a day after Islamabad reiterated its resolve to protect all foreign nationals, especially the Chinese. Chairing a security-related meeting last week in the restive port city of Gwadar, interior minister Rana Sanaullah had directed authorities to provide foolproof security to Chinese nationals working on various projects in Pakistan and warned any negligence in this regard would not be tolerated.
As per the official handout of the meeting, the security agencies were told to make foolproof security arrangements and adopt an integrated strategy for the timely completion of hydropower projects worth billions of rupees.
Last year in July, a team of Chinese engineers working on the 84 MW hydropower project in Swat hill station in the northwest had suspended work due to threats and moved to Islamabad.
A team of Chinese experts had also stopped work on the 11.8 MW Karora hydropower project in Shangla district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in May 2022, triggering fears that the delay could cause heavy losses to the province.
The Chinese government has also advised its citizens to be extremely cautious while in Pakistan due to threats to their lives.
In a notice on its website, the Chinese embassy shared no specific information about the nature of the “issues” nor was a timeline provided about the reopening of the “temporarily” closed consular section.
“The consular section of the Chinese embassy in Islamabad will be temporarily closed from February 13, 2023 until further notice due to technical issues,” reads the notice, adding the closure would remain in place until further orders.
The notice gave no reason for the suspension of the service but growing insecurity against Chinese nationals apparently seems to be one of the factors.
On Saturday, the Chinese foreign affairs ministry’s consular department had warned its citizens that they may be at risk of high levels of security in Pakistan. Beijing’s warning to its citizens had come a day after Islamabad reiterated its resolve to protect all foreign nationals, especially the Chinese. Chairing a security-related meeting last week in the restive port city of Gwadar, interior minister Rana Sanaullah had directed authorities to provide foolproof security to Chinese nationals working on various projects in Pakistan and warned any negligence in this regard would not be tolerated.
As per the official handout of the meeting, the security agencies were told to make foolproof security arrangements and adopt an integrated strategy for the timely completion of hydropower projects worth billions of rupees.
Last year in July, a team of Chinese engineers working on the 84 MW hydropower project in Swat hill station in the northwest had suspended work due to threats and moved to Islamabad.
A team of Chinese experts had also stopped work on the 11.8 MW Karora hydropower project in Shangla district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in May 2022, triggering fears that the delay could cause heavy losses to the province.