Understanding Pakistan’s Foreign Policy in the 21st Century: Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

Understanding Pakistan’s foreign policy is a herculean task because Pakistan has a diverse kind of country in its geostrategic and geoeconomic circumstances. This chapter will explain the theoretical and operational understanding of Pakistan’s foreign policy framework in the contemporary world. Pakistan’s geostrategic conditions are challenging and lucrative at the same time. Three nuclear powers surround it: China, India, and Russia. The fourth nuclear power is Pakistan, which is in the region. Iran, the fifth nuclear power, is in the making. Therefore, Pakistan is balancing its relations with Iran and Saudi Arabia, as an extremely Shia country and as a Sunni country, respectively. China is a communist, and the US is a democratic country, but Pakistan’s foreign policy is based on mutual interests and peaceful co-existence. The qualitative method would mainly be used to test this research’s hypothesis based on Pakistan’s ability to sustain itself in the comity of a nation as a soft power and peaceful country instead of a warmonger in the region. The consolidation in the form of recommendations will also be included at the end.