Pakistan in 2023: On the Brink of a Full-Blown Crisis

Saif Ur Rahman and Qasim Jan
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Saif Ur Rahman: Saif Ur Rahman has completed his doctoral studies at the School of Economics and Management, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China. His research interests include international political economy, social media and politics. His work has been published in scholarly journals such as Asian Survey.
Qasim Jan: Qasim Jan is a postdoctoral researcher at Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China. His research interests include education, culture, religion, state and society.

India Quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs, 2023, vol. 79, issue 3, 293-303

Abstract: Pakistan continues to face multiple sources of internal and external conflicts. Its all-powerful military is engaged in a subterranean battle to maintain its power. Economically, the country persisted in troubled waters as it has been for most of its recent history. In domestic politics, the failed experiment of a hybrid regime under Ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan forced the military to part ways with Mr Khan and install a coalition government of 13 political parties through a no-confidence vote in parliament in April 2022. Mr Khan’s political party is facing a severe crackdown in Pakistan after he accused the powerful military of his ouster from power. At the regional level, a favourable outcome in Afghanistan in the shape of the Taliban’s takeover has not yielded any significant positive results for Pakistan. After concluding the Afghan conflict on a favourable note, paradoxically, the military establishment hints at a desire to shift away from geo-security to geo-economics in its foreign policy goals. At the extra-regional level, the military is walking a tightrope to balance its ties between the USA and China to offset any adverse consequences arising from its strategic partnerships with China over China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). In this article, we explain a series of issues confronting Pakistan currently—including a deep economic crisis, political paralysis, and a resurgent terror threat—focusing on the military’s ambitions in the region and beyond.

Keywords: Pak–China relations; Afghan issues; Pak–India relations; Pakistani politics; Pakistan military; civil–military relations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:indqtr:v:79:y:2023:i:3:p:293-303

DOI: 10.1177/09749284231183320

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