KARACHI: Sinkiang, extreme south-west border province of China, has decided to accede to the Chinese Communist Govern­ment, according to authentic but unofficial reports reaching Karachi. Actual accession, these reports add, has not yet taken place. It will be recalled that Sinkiang Province earlier this year severed its connections with the Chinese Nationalist Government and declared itself independent.

Sinkiang commands the vital … corridor leading from Central Asia into the heart of Inner China. Strategically placed between Tibet on the east and Russian Turkistan on the west, it touches the fringes of Kansu and Chinghai provinces of China (now in Communist hands) on its north-east, while on its southern side it borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its north-eastern border touches outer Mongolia. The shortest route from Sinkiang to the sub-continent of India is through the Gilgit Agency. Its four million population consist of mainly Chinese-Turks who are the original inhabitants. The Uzbeks, who migrated into the country from Russian Turkistan … can however, be found in large numbers.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2024