Gwadar, port city (1998 est. pop. 43,850), Baluchistan prov., SW Pakistan, at the N end of the Arabian Sea. Traditional industries include fishing and fish processing; there also are facilities for the production of sea salt and the desalinizaton of water. In the early 21st cent. a modern deepwater port was developed there (largely with Chinese funding); the port officially opened in 2007. A 3.6 sq mi (9.3 sk km) Chinese special economic zone and free-trade area nearby the port is under development, and new or improved road, rail, and pipeline links with the rest of Pakistan as well as China and Iran are also being developed. Gwadar was ruled by the sultanate of Muscat and Oman (now Oman) from the late 18th cent.; it was purchased in 1958 by Pakistan.
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