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Beijing deploys border forces

Security is tight along China's border with Afghanistan

By Willy Wo-Lap Lam
Senior China Analyst

(CNN) -- Beijing has deployed a rapid response military force in western Xinjiang to ensure stability in areas bordering Afghanistan.

Diplomatic sources in Beijing said People's Liberation Army (PLA) headquarters had put together new crack units made up of elite soldiers from the Lanzhou Military Region and the Xinjiang Military District.

More units from the PLA and the People's Armed Police (PAP) have also been sent to western and southern Xinjiang in the past fortnight.

The Beijing-run Hong Kong paper, Wen Wei Po, reported on Wednesday that a rapid response unit recently set up by the Xinjiang Military District had been deployed in border regions in western Xinjiang.

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The paper reported that the unit consisted of large numbers of members from ethnic minorities, including Uighurs and Tajiks.

Wen Wei Po said the soldiers were equipped with "advanced weapons" and they could speak Afghan, Arabic and Pakistani languages.

It said gun-toting PAP officers could be seen patrolling areas close to the Afghan border.

Cracking down on terrorism

The official China News Service (CNS) reported that Xinjiang police had launched a two-month "war on crime" crusade.

"Cracking down on violent and terrorist activities is the main focus of this campaign," CNS said.

CNS also reported that police in the capital of Urumqi had so far this year smashed ten "violent and terrorist groups."

It said 210 suspects, including "core separatists," terrorists and religious extremists had been arrested.

However, diplomats and Chinese scholars who have been to western and southern Xinjiang since September 11 say there have been no reports of terrorist acts or major anti-Beijing activities.

Meanwhile, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Sun Yuxi said on Tuesday the Sino-Afghan border had been closed as of Monday, when the U.S. and its allies started air strikes against Afghanistan.

Sun said parts of Xinjiang close to Afghanistan would no longer be open to foreigners.

Hong Kong's Wen Wei Po also reported that Pakistani businessmen would not be allowed to enter China through Xinjiang.

It said most Pakistani tradesmen who used to be active in Urumqi and other Xinjiang cities had recently returned home.