China and Counter-Terrorism

Abstract

This chapter explores the factors that have shaped the operating environment of the “East Turkestan Islamic Movement” (ETIM) and “Turkestan Islamic Party” (TIP) and the broader strategic context in which Chinese counter-terrorism policy operates. It demonstrates that for much of the period since 2001 ETIM and TIP’s operating environment was conditioned by the central role of Pakistan, which through its sponsorship of the Taliban and other militants gave it a unique capacity to influence how these groups behaved towards China. This situation has been overturned by renewed Pakistani military operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) that have displaced TIP, while the Syrian conflict reconditioned the pathway to Uyghur militant recruitment away from South Asia to the Middle East. The net effect of this, the chapter concludes, is that after many years in which Beijing was able to mediate major elements of its counter-terrorism policy through its closest security partner, Pakistan, it is now being required to countenance a more direct role in addressing the threat across virtually all dimensions of policy – politically, economically, and potentially even militarily.