11

Feb

West Asia:  Pakistan Between Ambition and Reality

image

Though he has neither staged a coup nor formally declared himself as the leader of Pakistan, Gen Asim Munir, now Field Marshal, is in line with many army commanders before him who have ruled Pakistan since its inception in 1947.  At present, he is not only a virtual ruler of Pakistan. Still, he is also a highly ambitious man who looks for a big international role for Pakistan, that too at a time when Pakistan is passing through a very bad economic crisis and, in the words of its own prime minister, is moving around the world with a begging bowl. Besides having been forced to accept very stringent IMF conditions to get the loan? Pakistan is seeking capital through loans and central bank deposits from Gulf countries to stabilise its own economy.

Pakistan’s recent success in becoming an arms supplier is based on the propaganda it made of a counter-air campaign against India during Operation Sandoor in May last. to impress Muslim countries in West Asia In order to impress Muslim countries in West Asia, Pakistan made claims of its good training standards and operational integration while confronting India.    With this, Pakistan has succeeded in expanding defence diplomacy in West Asia and North Africa and has romped in defence partners like Saudi Arabia and Türkiye, as well as some other customers.

Earlier this month, Libya’s eastern commander, renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar, visited Rawalpindi for talks at Pakistan’s army headquarters with the army chief, Asim Munir.

Pakistan reportedly signed a $4bn defence deal with Haftar’s self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA), including 16 JF-17 fighters and 12 Super Mushak trainer aircraft. Pakistan is also reportedly in the final stages of a $1.5bn package to supply the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) with 10 Karakoram-8 light attack aircraft, more than 200 drones and air defence systems. Earlier in September last year, Saudi Arabia formalised a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement with Pakistan, stating that an attack on one would be treated as an attack on both.

The article argues that Pakistan, under Field Marshal Asim Munir’s de facto leadership, is pursuing an ambitious regional role in West Asia despite facing severe economic and internal security crises. Struggling with IMF conditions and seeking financial support from Gulf countries, Pakistan is attempting to boost foreign exchange and diplomatic influence through arms exports.
Obvious and Offbeat
By Pradeep Mathur
It has secured major defence deals with Libya and Sudan and strengthened ties with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye. However, the author contends that military sales alone cannot establish lasting regional influence, especially when compared to India’s far stronger economic engagement with Gulf nations in trade, investment, and energy. Ongoing militancy in Balochistan, terrorist attacks, and tensions with Afghanistan further weaken Pakistan’s credibility as a “security provider.” The article concludes that Pakistan should prioritise economic stability and improve relations with India instead of pursuing rivalry-driven ambitions.

As Pakistan positions itself as a regional arms supplier, rising militancy and economic problems continue to harass and limit its ambitions. And this is what Asim Munir and his hardline followers cannot ignore.

Pakistan hopes to earn foreign exchange and tide over its financial problems through these arms deals. This is all right, but if its leaders think that selling arms can expand diplomatic access and increase Pakistan’s visibility in the region, they are mistaken. The entire Gulf region and surrounding areas are a playground of big powers, and a country like Pakistan can hardly make a dent in that area. 

Therefore, the question is what Pakistan is aspiring for. Does it want to export weaponry or also has the ambition to provide security to the Arab world in its fancied role as the leader of the Muslim world and militarily most powerful Muslim nation? But can Pakistan play the role of a “security provider” when it is plagued by its own problems of militancy in Baluchistan and border tiffs with Afghanistan?

Despite presenting itself as a capable military force, Islamabad lacks the economic weight to build sustainable relationships with the Muslim world at a scale it dreams of. In the last financial year, Pakistan’s net foreign direct investment from all countries was about $2.5bn, while its total trade with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations was roughly $20bn.

By contrast, India’s GCC-sourced investment alone was $4.7bn in 2024, and its GCC trade was about $179bn. Moreover, India has transitioned into a strategic investor in Gulf infrastructure, energy, and technology. Therefore, Pakistan can be a military hardware supplier but cannot be an economic partner of Gulf countries like India.

The West Asian countries need a much bigger partnership portfolio, which includes not only defence but also energy, trade, investment, technology, and supply chains. India and the United Arab Emirates, for example, recently discussed deeper defence cooperation to establish a strategic defence partnership, alongside a $3bn LNG supply deal and ambitious trade targets.

What Asim Munir does not understand is that Pakistan’s military value can attract West Asian countries, but unless it has a sound economy, it is difficult to convert access into a relationship of interdependence.

Besides the economic scenario and a state of comparative disadvantage with India, with whom Pakistan wants to compete, the other thing is its internal unrest and violence within the country, something even the most optimistic supporters of Pakistan cannot ignore.

In Balochistan, a wave of simultaneous, province-wide attacks targeting administrative centres and security installations in Quetta and beyond has taken place recently, resulting in the death of more than 200 persons, including security personnel, rebels and civilians.

Last week, a suicide attacker struck a Shia Mosque on the outskirts of Islamabad during Friday prayers, killing more than 30 people and injuring about 170. This was the second major attack in the capital in three months.

On the border with Afghanistan, Pakistan is now locked in a confrontation with a Taliban regime that refuses to curb cross-border militancy. This conflict killed more than 1,000 people last year.

Though Pakistani leaders may not like to accept the fact that their country is “sandwiched” between hardcore enemies The Afghanistan-Pakistan situation is now more volatile than the India-Pakistan rivalry.

The right course for Pakistan will be to give up its approach of competition, rivalry and confrontation with India and learn to live like a good neighbour. Whatever the differences, terrorism and calling names cannot solve problems between two nations which have so much in common. Earlier, the likes of Asim Munir understood this better for them and their country. (Veteran journalist and media Guru, Prof Pradeep Mathur is Editor-in-Chief of Media Map News Network and Chairman of MBKM Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation for voluntary social work.)

**************

  • Share:

About Us

We must explain to you how all seds this mistakens idea off denouncing pleasures and praising pain was born and I will give you a completed accounts..

Contact Us

Contact Info

  • 70, Gyan Khand- 4, Indirapuram, Ghaziabad. Uttar Pradesh.
  • +91-9810533682
  • info@mediamap.co.in
  • Week Days: 09.00 to 18.00 Sunday: Closed