Richard Weitz, a scholar for the Hudson Institute, makes the argument that China's government has either exaggerated or outright fabricated a plot by Uighur separatist to attack the upcoming Olympics. The plot in question was reported by Chinese authorities on April 10, and in their words involved 45 suspects from the Uighur dominated Xinjiang Province, who allegedly planned to use firearms, explosives, and other weapons to disrupt the upcoming Olympic Games. Weitz finds this claim "dubious' because he:
1. Feels that the Chinese authorities have failed to produce evidence to the public verifying their claims
2. Believes China desires the safe transport of energy resources from a land route through Central Asia and into their own Xinjiang Province in order to sidestep the volatile Middle Eastern region and the US-controlled seaways. Therefore China is using this terrorist plot as an excuse to further spread its government's authority into the Xinjiang Province and beyond into the small Central Asian states.
Both of Weitz's arguments are sound and the Chinese government's actions concerning its region's of unrest, Xinjiang and Tibet, have been unquestionably harsh and repressive in the past, but it cannot be denied that there is a real terrorist threat, from the Uighur dominated regions of China and from sources as far away as Pakistan, where some of the suspects from the March 7 plane incident were trained and hailed from. The Uighur-based East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) has been blamed by the Chinese government for over 200 attacks since 1990 and not all of these could have been fabricated. Here is the Council on Foreign Relations quick synopsis of ETIM and their capabilities and supposed terrorist actions. It is also important to know that the ETIM is also considered a terrorist group by the United States (Here is a good article from Global Terrorism Analysis that sums up reasons for this identification) and the United Nations Security Council.
It goes without saying that any accusations the Chinese government makes regarding the Tibetan and Uighur-based regions and security issues should be looked at suspiciously, but it must be acknowledged that the Chinese state has cause to be concerned about a terrorist threat, specifically regarding its hosting of the upcoming Olympics. Am I being to kind/naïve about the Chinese government's claims? Should the US government ask for evidence to verify these claims or should it just mind its own business as the Chinese almost assuredly believe it will?
PS: Here is a more in-depth article by Weitz's discussing Russia, China, and the US's interests and areas for competition/cooperation in Central Asia: “Averting a New Great Game in Central Asia”
