As a non-traditional security threat, climate change has continued to produce daunting challenges for Pakistan. The pressing issue of global warming poses a direct threat to the country’s future economic stability and security. The devastating floods of 2010 and 2011 and the extreme heatwave of 2015 have indicated that the state should brace itself for…
When US President Donald Trump announced his policy to shift the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the divided Muslim world awoke from its deep slumber and issued its faint disproval to the decision. Since 1969, the so-called Muslim Ummah has failed to extend meaningful support to the hapless Palestinians for acquiring their inalienable…
As a sovereign state, Pakistan cannot sustain itself politically and militarily without long-term economic stability. Despite having a significant geo-economic location and potential natural resources the country is plagued by severe economic crises – an increasing debt, a fiscal deficit, burdensome public corporations and low taxation. If the government continues to disregard the brewing economic…
With lavish pageantry and an uncharacteristic personal flourish, Chinese President Xi Jinping on November 8 rolled out a red carpet welcoming US President Donald Trump at the Forbidden City, the ancient home of China’s emperors. President Trump, who is under fire in the US due to Russian meddling in the presidential elections, paid a visit…
In contemporary international relations, sovereign states often switch alliances and forge relations with their former adversaries with the intent to fully maximise their national interests. So, it can safely be said that the national interests of a country determine the direction and nature of its foreign policy. The ongoing bonhomie between Russia and Saudi Arabia…
Since Pakistan and Afghanistan cannot change their geographical locations, it is in their long-term economic and security interest to bury the acrimonious past and forge ties. Whenever Islamabad and Kabul remain at loggerheads due to cross-border terrorism, India grabs the opportunity by further driving wedges between the two countries with the intent to maximise its…
The Indo-Japanese relationship is rapidly gathering impetus, taking shape faster than any of New Delhi’s current strategic partnerships in Asia. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited India in September to attend the 12th India-Japan Annual Summit. Both countries have agreed to establish the India-Japan Act East Forum with the intention of connecting India’s Act East…
Pakistan has lacked a pragmatic and well-articulated foreign policy since 2008. What is more worrying is that the PML-N- led incumbent democratic dispensation has displayed an outright reluctance to appoint a competent and astute foreign minister for almost four years. Because of Pakistan’s entrenched foreign policy crisis the world is rather unwilling to appreciate the…
IntroductionIn 1945, the US State Department observed: “the resources of the Middle East are a stupendous source of strategic power and one of the greatest material prizes in the world history.” Presumably, effective control over the topsy-turvy Middle Eastern affairs — both economic and security — can help a hegemonic power to exercise increasing clout…
Balochistan is widely projected to become the regional trade hub on account of the CPEC projects. If this grand connectivity corridor materialises by the stipulated time period, this will undoubtedly make Pakistan a major economic and naval power in South Asia, as well as making Balochistan a developed and prosperous province. However, the growing presence…
