Central Asian powerhouse China on Monday requested global superpower United States of America to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan in an “orderly and responsible manner,” over concerns that the war ravaged country, which shares its borders with the Xinjiang province of China, may become a hot-bed for radical extremism for Uighur Muslim militants.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian remark comes a week after US Defence Secretary Christopher Miller stated that the United States would drastically reduce its military presence in the country from 4,500 soldiers to 2,500 troops.

Lijian, in a press brief, said, “China calls on foreign troops to leave Afghanistan in an orderly and responsible manner, give terrorist forces no breathing space and contribute to Afghanistan peace and reconciliation process.”

He further condemned the malicious attack carried out by the Islamic State on Kabul and said, “China will continue to firmly support the Afghan government and people in their efforts to combat terrorism and safeguard the national stability and their own security”.

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Critics have opined that China has been dealt with a double whammy with Washington’s withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan as it also coincides with its subsequent upliftment of ban on the Uighur militant group- the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM).

The Trump administration had in November lifted its ban on the separatist group ETIM, which had been deemed a terrorist organisation by the UN’s 1267 counter terrorism committee in 2002 over its association with al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban.

China further criticised the US move, saying, “fighting ETIM is an international consensus and an important part of the international counter-terrorism fight.”

China accuses the ETIM of carrying out attacks in the Uighur Muslim dominated province of Xinjiang and outside, including one in Beijing.

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The US has had in the past year repeatedly criticised China’s treatment of Uighurs in the Xinjiang area, accusing China of running internment camps.

China has repeatedly defended its position by stating that the settlements were re-education centre’s meant to wean away the Uighur population from religious extremism.