Pakistani President to visit China after killings
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-02-17 20:54

Wednesday's attack on the engineers in Hub, a town west of Karachi, was not the first time Chinese have been targeted by militants in the restive province of Baluchistan -- three were killed in a bomb attack in Gwadar port in 2004.

Bodies of the Chinese workers are brought to a hospital after a shooting incident in the Pakistani town of Hub, near Karachi, February 15, 2006. Pakistani separatist gunmen killed three Chinese workers and their driver in a drive-by shooting in southern Pakistan on Wednesday. [Reuters]

A separatist group called the Baluch Liberation Army has claimed responsibility for the latest attack.

"It will not have much impact on the relations but I think Chinese will be cautious in expanding relations to ensure security of their people in Pakistan," said Talat Masood, a political analyst and a former general.

Referring to Musharraf's visit, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang talked of the two countries' cooperation in cracking down on "three forces" -- a reference to terrorism, separatists and religious extremism.

"The intensifying cooperation between the two sides are not only beneficial to the countries themselves, but also beneficial to the stability and peace of the region," Gang said.

China is concerned about Islamic militancy spilling over its western borders, and some Central Asian militants have hidden in Pakistan to escape crackdowns in their own countries.

The speed with which security forces detained close to 50 suspects and promised extra protection for Chinese workers showed the importance Pakistan attaches to relations with China.

There are around 1,000 Chinese workers involved in infrastructure projects and industries in Pakistan, and a senior Chinese diplomat said it is up to them whether they want to stay or go in view of the security situation.

"Ten Chinese technicians who were working along the engineers killed on Wednesday have gone back to China, but these are the only Chinese to go back," the diplomat said.