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Pakistan’s strategic culture is riddled with debates echoing the country’s unique geographical positioning at the crossroads of South, Central and West Asia. Pakistan’s maritime environment connects it with the Gulf Arab States of the Arabian Peninsula and also with the countries of East Africa. Still the complexities of regional geopolitics and in particular the fraught nature of bilateral relationships with both eastern and western neighbors have curtailed Pakistan’s potential of becoming an important node in trans-regional connectivity endeavors and trade corridors. The recent escalation of border hostilities with Afghanistan has again laid bare this strategic conundrum.

Upon independence, Pakistan’s neighborhood and the picture of global politics was readily different from what it is today. As the cold war was just starting, both the United States and the Soviet Union were actively vying to expand their respect zones of influence across different continents and to recruit allies for their respective political blocks. In that context, Pakistan’s location indeed presented it with significant opportunities. Even after the dismemberment of the country, Pakistan still retained its significance as a critical player in the geopolitics of both South Asia and the Middle East. 

Events in 1979 including the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the revolution in Iran and Israel-Egypt........

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