It is that, in an undefined way, on the high Roof of the World what more fitting a place! —the three greatest Empires of the Earth meet—Great Britain, Russia, and China.
This was the account which renowned English author and soldier Edward Frederick Knight gave about today’s Gilgit-Baltistan while narrating his historical visit to Kashmir, Tibet and Gilgit in his famous book Where Three Empires Meet. Gilgit-Baltistan is the name of a place located at the confluence of three great mountain ranges—the Himalayas, the Hindukush and the Karakoram; a place poised at the crossroads of three great civilizations—Indian, Central Asian and Chinese; and a place where three Asias converge—South, Central and East Asia.
Gilgit-Baltistan is well-known across the world for its geostrategic location, beautiful valleys echoing nature, pristine lakes, sublime and sky-touching peaks, green orchids, great hospitality of its people, historical places, unique culture as well as the eighth wonder of the world—the Karakoram Highway.
Gilgit-Baltistan has an area of 72,971 square kilometer with an estimated population of about 2 million. Surrounded by Dir, Swat, Kohistan and Kaghan districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the west, the Wakhan Corridor of Afghanistan in the north west, Xinjiang Province of China in the east and northeast, Azad Jammu and Kashmir in the south west, and a 480-kilometer-long Line of Control (LoC) alongside Indian occupied Kashmir in the south east, Gilgit-Baltistan has an immense geopolitical importance. With the energy rich Central Asia at its doorstep, and its borders lined closed to an emerging China, are surging Russia and an enthusiastic India trying hard to establish itself as regional hegemon, it has long been, and remains to this day, the battle ground on which wars of hegemony took place.
In the past, it was regarded as the Axis of Asia as a result of the stable supply lines that connected India, China and Central Asia to the Middle East, African landmass, the Mediterranean and Europe for the purpose of trade and commerce. The most prominent of these routes was the Ancient Silk Route that contributed to the wealth of the civilizations it touched. The remnants of this historical trade route can still be seen in Hunza, a district of Gilgit Baltistan. However, it has now been replaced by the Karakoram Highway, the main artery connecting western Xinjiang province of China with Gilgit-Baltistan, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistan. In the nineteenth century, the region remained the fulcrum of the Great Game waged between the then super powers: Russia and British India. John Keay in his book, The Gilgit Game: The Explorers of the Western Himalayas, has described the part of great game played in Gilgit which was then perceived as the gateway to India on which the safety of British India depended against Russian invasions. In effect, Gilgit and Chitral served as a buffer between the former Colonial Empire and the Bear.
As the British journalist Tim Marshall opined, “Geography not just shapes history, but also destiny”. Gilgit Baltistan is again emerging as the geo-economic center of the world as the emerging world power, China, goes on to materialize the pilot project of its Belt and Road Initiative—the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). CPEC is a robust 60 billion dollars multi-purpose venture envisioned by Chinese president Xi Jinping that aims to provide China an alternative short overland route to the Middle East and beyond to bypass potential bottlenecks in the disputed South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca. The distance from Khunjerab pass to Gwadar port, the ending and starting points of CPEC in Pakistan respectively, is 2463 kilo meters which saves more than 16000 kilometers of distance for China. Through this project, Chinese economy is expected to grow by leaps and bounds, surpassing that of United States to become the number one economy of the world. Perceiving this, the US has stepped up its own geo-political maneuvers in the area strengthening its ties with India, Australia and Japan in an arrangement commonly termed as the Quad. In this regard, secretary of Defense Mark T Esper called the US defense ties with India, “one of the all-important defense relationships of the 21st century”.
Being the gateway of CPEC, Gilgit-Baltistan is to receive a direct impact of the New Cold War, with the Indo-US nexus pitted against the strategic alliance of Pakistan and China. As a consequence of this 21st century Great Game, the region might witness an uptick in sectarian strife, sub-nationalist movements and vile propagandizing against various developmental projects, notably the CPEC.
Given the significance it has gained in the new geo-economic settings, all eyes have once again returned to Gilgit Baltistan, both good and evil. Pakistan’s eastern neighbor has always been hostile to any developmental projects and foreign investments in the region considering it ‘disputed’. Gilgit-Baltistan has gained immense importance in Indian policy discourses for being a doorway to the resource rich Central Asia, the only route that could provide India the access to Afghanistan, and the only landmass connecting Pakistan with China. Likewise, Russia, being a strategic partner of China in its bid to curtail US high-handedness in the region, vowed to continue Vladimir Putin’s connectivity model called the “Greater Eurasian Partnership”, which essentially encompasses support for CPEC and BRI. Pakistan, itself recognizing the intensity of growing interests of foreign powers in its north-most region, has finally decided to integrate it in country’s legal framework, announcing a provisional provincial status for Gilgit-Baltistan, a decision highly welcomed by the local populace.
Apart from the geo-political highs and lows, Gilgit-Baltistan is blessed with a variety of attractions: magestic glaciers, largest outside Polar Regions, the second highest plateau in the world—the Deosai plains, second highest peak in the world—the K-2 mountain, dense forests, vast flora and fauna, and rich heritage, culture and traditions. The people of Gilgit Baltistan are simple-natured, highly hospitable and gallant warriors who proved their valor during the wars of 1948, 1965, Siachen conflict, Kargil limited war and the War on Terror. Lalik Jan, a son of Gilgit Baltistan, was awarded Nishan-i-Haider for his monumental sacrifices during the Kargil war. Essentially, the people of Gilgit-Baltistan are peace-loving, kind-hearted and true patriots ever ready to sacrifice their lives for their country, Pakistan. Hence, their struggle to achieve legal rights was, indeed, a manifestation of their sheer desire to be identified with Pakistan—a country for which they fought against the Dogra rulers on their own, without any outside assistance!
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