In Jan 2005, almost 13 years ago, my first book published under the title “Pakistan’s defence and nuclear doctrine” was launched by Mohammad Ijaz ul Haq (then federal minister for religious affairs) and Major General (Retd) Rahat Latif. The compilation of such book during that critical period was considered to be the need of time…
The Magna Carta, or the “Charter of Liberties”, limiting the King’s power and strengthening the rights of nobles was signed by King John at Runnymede near London on June 15, 1215. Brokered by the Archbishop of Canterbury and meant to rein in rebellious barons, without any sincere intent John was simply playing for time to…
A Muslim majority state was envisaged by its founder Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah to ensure conducive conditions for the Muslims of British-India for socio-economic, cultural and religious development. Pakistan geographically being situated at the fringes of former British-India, many of the features inherited from the British and the lack of basic infrastructure made its beginning…
While President Trump was touring part of Asia, his wish to entice India and Pakistan “to talk” echoed once again in the mainstream media; this has been his well-articulated electoral promise as well. The Trump administration hopes that better relations between India and Pakistan would allow it to focus on Afghanistan. A fresh, behind the…
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…
The Syrian conflict is in its seventh year due to which more than 465,000 Syrians have been killed in the fighting while more than a million have been injured. Over 12 million Syrians, half the country’s prewar population, have been displaced from their native lands and homes. US and Russia Joint StatementRecently, the US and…
The 2014 Indian general elections for the selection of sixteenth Lok Sabha was completed in nine phases and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was declared victorious. Former Chief Minister of Gujarat and an active member of BJP, Narendra Damodardas Modi became the fourteenth Prime Minster of India. The change of government…
Karachi is Pakistan’s financial capital, the country’s largest city and one of its most dangerous. In addition to crimes common to most big cities, organised gangs of extortionists, land grabbers, mercenaries in turf wars among political parties, ethnic groups and criminal gangs protected by political parties complicate the city’s law and order woes. For decades,…
It was October of 1962, seemingly humanity was coming to an end through repeat of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. So while Kremlin and White House were busy averting World War-III during the Cuban Missile crises, China launched a two pronged land offensive about 1000 miles apart against India across the Himalayas. Chinese political aim was to…
ContextAs the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia enters a new phase of political changes, questions are being raised about what it means for the region and beyond. The regional tussles between Iran and Saudi Arabia have already engulfed Yemen and Syria, and Lebanon is the recent causality. As previously described in this space the peripheral regions…
