DETERRENCE is a strategy aimed at preventing adversary aggression by creating a credible threat of severe consequences, making the cost of hostility unbearable.

Nuclear deterrence, in particular, has evolved into a volatile but highly effective strategy, with Pakistan using it primarily to counter India. Based on Credible Minimum Deterrence (CMD), Pakistan’s nuclear posture has gradually developed into full-spectrum deterrence, incorporating tactical to strategic options across the country’s defence system. It emphasizes that any aggression threatening national survival could trigger nuclear use, providing a tiered response to conflict while rejecting a “no first use” policy and maintaining ambiguity to deter both conventional and nuclear attacks.

Since its inception, Pakistan’s pursuit of peace has repeatedly faced Indian covert and overt military actions. India’s superiority in conventional forces and nuclear........

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