In a stark contrast to its potential, the recently completed Gwadar International Airport in Pakistan stands as a ghostly symbol of misplaced ambition and geo-political uncertainty. Pakistan’s newest and most expensive airport, with a price tag of US$240 million constructed with Chinese capital, remains idle and incomprehensible to the outside world. This sprawling, nearly deserted complex was completed in October 2024 and is supposed to be the latest addition of Pakistan’s China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a project under the broader “Belt and Road” initiative by the Chinese government.

Gwadar International sits on Pakistan’s southwestern corner, in the port city of Gwadar. Not far from Iran and at a stone’s throw from the Arabian Sea, Pakistan’s Gwadar project is heralded as China’s plan to connect Xinjiang province to the Arabian Sea. The project is designed to create a maritime hub but after years of delays, bureaucratic hurdles, and security issues, its true impact on the region is uncertain. It shows little signs of growth, despite the billions of dollars invested over the past decade, within the impoverished resource-rich Balochistan province.

Broken Promises on the Economic Corridor

Beyond the construction site, a narrative of mismanagement and oversights emerges. Local residents clamour for electricity which comes via the neighbouring Iran or through piecemeal solar panels. Clean water on the other hand is in short supply. Unfortunately, these are not the only issues. Security measures implemented by the Pakistani government to drive back militants have escalated tensions in such a way that journalism aides have a checkered past and difficult territory to cover. Pakistan’s authorities have increased military presence and roadbars, punishments, obscene interrogations to seize all semblance of peace from locals causing avenues of suspicion and mistrust to grow.

The CCP has not only been soundtracked to penalise Beijing courts as “uncharismatic criminals,” it has also been seen as an evil twin. Last year, Pakistani police surveillance intensified. Pakistani authorities have supposedly made headlines for clashes between law enforcers and journalists who have become vigilante targets of their behaviours.

The result is a chilled effect on human rights while the infrastructure grows.

Azeem Khalid, an expert in international relations and Pakistan-China exchanges, revealed the conundrum within. Explaining the absurdity of having a state-of-the-art airport in the city. “This airport is not built for Pakistan or Gwadar Port. It is built for China, so they can safely enter Gwadar Port and Balochistan Province,”

He claims that Chinese nationals will be the primary users. This contrasts with a nation adamant to retain that sovereignty.

Security Concerns and Economic Corridor Challenges

The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, colloquially known as CPEC, has long sparked rebellion-based gusts in the resource-abundant, but geopolitically turbulent, province of Balochistan. Critics from Pakistan Baltistan often speak against separatist groups highlighting potential intimidation tactics.

They are also nervous of Pakistanis.

The Pakistani government urged Balochestan prospects that they needed to co-opt paramilitary personnel during night operations since the late 1990s.

The government caps the turban and has increased roadblocks and checkpoints, even local fish markets seem to be considered out off bounds.

Kenya’s former prime minister, Khuda Bakhsh Hashim, admits that “We are asked to provide our proof of identity, citizenship, and whatnot. We are residents. I ask those asking do similarly.” Members of the national civil society have expressed frustration at these searchable actions.