Taking Control The Chinese Way : Afghanistan’s China Town reopens, not disrupted by the Taliban
The China Town in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul reopened in Just few days after Taliban takeover. The China Town has not faced any major disruption from the incident of Kabul airport blasts which killed at least 100 people including 13 US service members. However Chinese entrepreneurs have been directed to scale up their security efforts to tackle persisting armed conflicts…..whatever this means.
Li Xijing, deputy general manager of the China Town, said that everything is normal, when reached by Chinese Media reporters Cassie, a Chinese employee of the China Town, said that the situation at the park is stable, and employees are relatively calm.
Located in downtown Kabul, the China Town was set up in 2019 and houses dozens of factories producing shoes, clothes, textiles and cables, some of which have been put into trial operation.
According to Chinese businessmen, vendors at the China Town have reopened in recent days, after several weeks of suspension amid a chaotic power transition. “But we have strengthened security work, including body checks for all persons in and out of the town,” Cassie said.
Li said that the situation in Afghanistan is likely to be shaped by persisting conflicts, and Chinese entrepreneurs need to be both physically and physiologically prepared. “Only relative security can be achieved in Afghanistan, and it may take a long process to achieve a throughout stable situation,” Li said, adding that the work of China Town will proceed as planned.
Yu Minghui, director of the China Arab Economic and Trade Promotion Committee, who is also a founding member of China Town, said on Friday that his overall investment plan will not change after the airport attacks, but specific plans may be adjusted accordingly.
Despite the instability at the current stage, Chinese private firms all eye “a thousand opportunities” in Afghanistan’s post-chaos economic reconstruction after Taliban took power.
Taliban’s leadership has been displaying a welcoming attitude toward Chinese businessmen, offering an olive branch that has assured small- and medium-sized Chinese investors.
“When Taliban heard about business hurdles in China Town, they would send higher-level officials, asking about the difficulty and how they could help. They say that Chinese people are friends, and should not be afraid to ask if they run into any trouble,” Yu said.
According to Yu, Chinese businessmen were also informed that the new leadership has vowed to protect investors, as “whoever stayed in the country is helping Afghans.”
China’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the terror attacks at the airport showed the security situation in Afghanistan is still severe. And China strongly condemns and was shocked by the number of casualties in the terror attacks.
