Pakistan's National Interest

Pakistan’s National Interest
What is best for the nation

Outline
• Introduction
• Four propositions of National Interest
i. Territorial integrity,
ii. Wellbeing of its citizens,
iii. Maintain internal cohesion and harmony,
iv. Regional peace and stability
• Pakistan National Interest
• Conclusion
Introduction
• National Interest is a vague and ambiguous
term.
• It carries a meaning according to the context in
which it is used by the statesmen and policy-
makers for justifying the actions of their states.
• It means what is best for the nation, what is
beneficial for the nation in the long term.
Introduction
• While Morgenthau equated it with
“survival—the protection of physical, political
and cultural identity against encroachments by
other nation-states”,
Introduction
• Charles Lerche defined it;
• “general, long term and continuing purpose
which the state, the nation, and the
government all see themselves as serving.”
Introduction
• Brookings Institute which defines it;
• “What a nation feels to be necessary to its
security and wellbeing … National interest
reflects the general and continuing ends for
which a nation acts.”
Four propositions of National Interest
• Although its precise definition may differ from
country to country and from time to time,
• The framework for the determination of the
national interest of a country essentially
consists of four interrelated and interdependent
propositions such as;
Four propositions of National Interest
i. Territorial integrity,
ii. Wellbeing of its citizens,
iii. Maintain internal cohesion and harmony,
iv. Regional peace and stability
Territorial integrity
• The first component of a country’s national
interest is to maintain its territorial integrity by
being able to defend itself from any external
aggression.
• Related to the above is the preservation of its
sovereignty in the sense that the state is able to
take all the decisions without being under
duress or command of outside forces.
Wellbeing of its citizens
• The second component of the national interest
of a country is the wellbeing of its citizens by
ensuring decent standards of living for its
populace.
• This, in turn, is dependent upon a country
growing at a rate commensurate with its
survival and growth needs.
Maintain internal cohesion and
harmony
• Third component of the national interest of a
country is to maintain internal cohesion and
harmony.
• With few exceptions, all modern nation states
are multi ethnic entities in which the different
communities compete for the scarce resources.
• This is a healthy competition if it remains
confined within the constitutional limits.
Maintain internal cohesion and
harmony
• However, if some groups cross those
boundaries, it may weaken the very
foundations of the state and create existential
threat for the country.
• Thus the national interest of the country lies in
containing that unrest and instead improve
their cohesion.
Regional peace and stability
• Lastly, the fourth essential component of the
national interest of a country is the
preservation of regional peace and stability in
the region where it is located or have vital
interests.
• No country howsoever powerful may be, can
live in peace and enjoy prosperity if there is
turmoil just outside its borders.
Regional peace and stability
• Civil war in a neighboring country not only
results in the influx of refugees with attendant
consequences,
• It may also result in internal turmoil if a
section of the population starts taking part in
that external conflict, crises or war on the basis
of ethnic affinity or religious feelings.
Pakistan National Interest
• We can discuss the national interest of
Pakistan by using the theoretical framework
described above;
i. Territorial Integrity and National Sovereignty
ii. Economic Well-being of the People
iii. Internal Stability and Cohesion
iv. Regional Peace and stability
Territorial Integrity and National
Sovereignty
• There cannot be two opinions on the
overriding importance of ensuring its territorial
integrity and preserving its national
sovereignty in its formulation of national
interest.
• In order to exist as an independent, sovereign
nation state, Pakistan has been trying to
achieve the following four objectives:
Sovereignty:
i. Maintaining a well-trained and well
equipped defense forces by providing them
state of the art training and equipping them
with modern weaponry.
ii. Building a credible indigenous defense
armaments capability to attain self-
sufficiency in the production of conventional
arms and ammunitions
Sovereignty:
iii. Acquiring an effective nuclear, strategic and
tactical, capability to compensate it for the
lack of adequate strategic depth and
comparatively inadequate resources against
its adversary.
iv. Cultivating friendly relations with China and
the Muslim Block to help it with the requisite
diplomatic support in case of external
aggression
Sovereignty:
• That is why we have been cultivating friendly
relations with those countries, capable of
meeting our defense needs.
• Joining American-sponsored defense pacts like
SEATO and CENTO and concluding Mutual
Defense Pact with the USA in the 1950s by
Pakistan was precisely for this reason.
Sovereignty:
• When USA imposed an embargo on supply of
military equipment during 1965 War with
India, Pakistan had no option but to court
China.
• At the same time, Pakistan has been
maintaining friendly relations with its
neighbors and the Muslim countries for
diplomatic support in case of external
aggression.
Economic Well-being of the People
• Ensuring that the country has the necessary
wherewithal to improve the quality of life of
the common citizens by meeting their basic
needs at affordable cost has been the second
most important component of the national
interest formulated by the state of Pakistan.
• A state which cannot meet the basic needs of
the people loses its legitimacy, resulting in
existential threat for the country itself.
• History is replete with instances of states
breaking due to economic shortfalls.
• After all, one of the main reasons for the
breakup of former USSR was its inability to
provide its citizens with the basic goods of
daily use.
• For this purpose, Pakistan has been trying to
achieve the following four objectives:
i. Achieving a sustainable and inclusive growth
whose gains are distributed equitably among
all the regions of the country and all the
sections of the society.
ii. Access to foreign markets not only to ensure
un-interrupted supply of essential resources
including technology but also to sell its
exportable surplus at competitive rates.
iii. Attracting Foreign Direct investment to
develop it human and natural resources,
modernization of its economy and up scaling
its technology base.
iv. Obtaining foreign economic assistance from
bilateral or multilateral sources to bridge the
resource gap
Internal Stability and Cohesion
• Pakistan came into existence as an independent
nation-state on 14th of August 1947 after the
dissolution of British Indian Empire.
• Newly carved out state contained 5 major and
more than 12 minor nationalities which no doubt
had successfully launched a movement for the
creation of an independent nation-state of their
own but was a far cry from calling itself a one
nation.
Internal Stability and Cohesion
• Consequently, nation building has been one of
the biggest challenges facing Pakistan since its
creation 70 years ago.
• For this purpose, it has four objectives;
i. Formulating a shared vision of a just and
prosperous Pakistan enshrined in a duly
formulated with consensus and formally
approved constitution.
Internal Stability and Cohesion:
ii. Ensuring that this shared vision is
implemented by well-functioning vibrant
institutions to create stakes for everyone to
feel satisfied in a united, federal Pakistan.
iii. Mainstreaming the marginalized sections and
disgruntled elements of society by ensuring
good governance at different levels of
interaction and taking affirmative action on
selective basis where needed
Internal Stability and Cohesion:
iv. Strengthening the democratic process by
promoting true political culture (of tolerance
and accommodation),
• strengthening its democratic structures (of
parliaments, election commissions,) and
• letting the various democratic processes (of
holding elections at federal, provincial and
local levels) continue uninterruptedly.
Regional Peace and stability
• While reserving its right to defend its

territorial integrity and national sovereignty,
Pakistan, being a peace loving nation-state,
acting responsibly in global and regional
affairs, believes in peaceful coexistence.
• Consequently, regional peace is the
cornerstone of Pakistan’s national interest for
which it has four objectives.
Regional Peace and stability:
i. Eliminating the safe havens of terrorists
created by the footloose/state sponsored
terrorist’s outfits within the country
ii. Striving for the establishment of a broad-
based government in Afghanistan which
could end its decades long civil war paving
way for the return of millions of Afghan
refugees living in Pakistan for the last quarter
of a century.
Regional Peace and stability:
iii. Working with the Afghan government to
ensure that stop the terrorists using
Afghanistan as a base for launching of
terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.
iv. Maintaining of good neighborly relations
with all the regional countries in general and
with India in particular to ensure that the
terrorists do not get financial, material and
diplomatic support
Conclusion
• In order to safeguard its national interest, a state
formulates a comprehensive national policy
consisting of host of social, economic and
political policies and related strategies to achieve
the various objectives set under the above
mentioned four components of the National
Interests.
• Foreign policy is a part and parcel of this national
policy which is formulated to achieve the
objectives set to safeguard its national interest.

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Pakistan’s National Interest

What is best for the nation

• While reserving its right to defend its

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