A NUMBER of foreign policy challenges lie ahead for Pakistan in 2025. They have to be met in an unstable global environment of mounting geopolitical tensions, intense US-China competition, preoccupation of major powers with wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the uncertainties spawned by Donald Trump’s impending second term in office. The regional landscape too is fraught and unsettled, with security problems casting a long shadow, as laid bare by recent hostilities between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Moreover, these challenges have to be tackled when the country’s economy remains fragile and dependent on external financial resources while the political situation continues to be uncertain. As all foreign policy begins at home, these realities weigh heavily on the conduct of its diplomacy.

All challenges in the priority areas of Pakistan’s foreign policy need to be deftly handled. They include the country’s relations with China and the US, while avoiding getting into the crosshairs of their confrontation, dealing with an increasingly troubled relationship with Afghanistan, managing the adversarial relationship with India, balancing ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran and keeping relations with the EU on a positive track.

The big unknown is how relations with Trump’s America will shape up especially as Pakistan’s geopolitical importance has diminished for Washington since the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The relationship remains at a crossroads with a reset proving elusive during President Joe Biden’s tenure. The low-level engagement of the past four years was........

© Dawn