This article uses a historical approach to identify the reasons Pakistan has turned to Islam as a means to deal with its security dilemma. It then examines the role of education especially that which is oriented toward Islam, in alleviating and/or exacerbating Pakistan’s sense of insecurity. In 1984, while reflecting on Pakistan’s political […]
PAKISTAN AND ITS DISCONTENTS
Pakistan is facing a serious crisis today and despite the proclivity of the nation’s elites to blame external forces, the wounds are largely self-inflicted. India is not the biggest danger Pakistan faces today. It is the extremist groups that the security establishment has nurtured over the years that have turned against the Pakistani state. The […]
U.S. Policy Toward Pakistan and Afghanistan under the Obama Administration
The study examines how the United States has come to deal with Afghanistan-Pakistan, a key foreign policy challenge for the Obama administration. It focuses on President Obama’s new policy known as AfPak, the Kerry-Lugar Act, and other U.S. initiatives adopted since 2009 in order to help stabilize the situation in South Asia. The author concludes by arguing that the new initiatives will not substantially improve the situation in Pakistan, because they fail to address the country’s core problem: lack of strong democratic institutions.
Pakistan and the Challenge of Islamist Terror: Where to Next?
This article examines Pakistan’s role in the “war on terror” in light of the transition from the Musharraf presidency to that of Zardari. It opens with Musharraf’s tenure and proceeds to discuss some of the key challenges faced by the current administration in this respect.
Pakistan on the Tightrope
PAKISTAN ON THE TIGHTROPE Isaac Kfir* This article examines Pakistan following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and the recent parliamentary elections within the confines of the challenges that arise from the need to embrace democracy. The article accepts that Pakistan must contend with a powerful military, rising Islamism, tribalism, an unstable political […]
The Waziristan Accord
Г?ВЇГ?В»Г?Вї THE WAZIRISTAN ACCORD Evagoras C. Leventis* The Waziristan Accord between Pakistan’s government and tribal leaders in that country’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) has failed not only to curb violence in the immediate region but also to restrict cross-border militant activity—including resurgent Taliban and al-Qa’ida cadres—between Pakistan’s “tribal belt” and Afghanistan. The purpose of […]