On Pakistan's geopolitical situation, 1977-1987; includes 93 p. of interviews with foreign dignitaries.

The region encompassing Afghanistan and Pakistan (Af/Pak region) is undergoing a fundamental strategic change. This book analyses the nature of this strategic change, in ordre to seek possible future scenarios and to examine policy options. It also undertakes a critical review of the basic elements of the Western strategic approach towards dealing with regional conflicts in all parts of the world, with special emphasis on the Af/Pak region. Dealing with the political developments i one of the most volatile regions in the world – Afghanistan and Pakistan – the volume focuses on Western strategic concerns. The withdrawal of ISAF by 2014 will change the overall political setting and the work addresses the challenges that will result for Western policymakers thereafter. It examines the cases of Afghanistan and Pakistan separately, and also looks at the broader region and tries to identify different outcomes. This book will be of much interest to students of Central and South Asian politics, strategic studies, foreign policy and security studies generally.

Pakistan has exercised different forms of Political systems like Presidential, Parliamentary, Federation and One Unit. Local Bodies system has also been influenced by these experiences. It has been facing Political, non-political, dictators and bureaucratic influence. Pakistan has poor facts of democracy. It has been ruled by the military, while the Military governments always generated mistakes with the politicians. Pakistan’s capacity to protract the low cost conflict in Kashmir is beyond any doubt. Although the likely spillover effects of this on Pakistan’s polity are obvious, they will be, to a great degree, manageable. The Islamist organisations, in spite of their opposition to elements of the state and its armed forces, are in favour of maintaining the unity of the country that is, for them, “the fortress of Islam” and “the only Islamic nuclear power”. And though the US wants to tame the Pakistan army, and especially ISI its intelligence agency, it knows it will not benefit from the disintegration of the country. Nevertheless the pressures that imperialism and neoliberalism are putting on the country are creating a complex mesh of ethnic and nationalist tensions that could lead to a spiralling war. Only by fighting for a unified working class response to the pressures of globalisation and war can we hope to be able to offer an alternative.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

The Council on Foreign Relations sponsors Independent Task Forces to assess issues of current and critical importance to U.S. foreign policy and provide policymakers with concrete judgments and recommendations. Diverse in backgrounds and perspectives, Task Force members aim to reach a meaningful consensus on policy through private and non-partisan deliberations. Once launched, Task Forces are independent of CFR and solely responsible for the content of their reports. Task Force members are asked to join a consensus signifying that they endorse "the general policy thrust and judgments reached by the group, though not necessarily every finding and recommendation." Each Task Force member also has the option of putting forward an additional or a dissenting view. Members' affiliations are listed for identification purposes only and do not imply institutional endorsement. Task Force observers participate in discussions, but are not asked to join the consensus. --Book Jacket.

This book delineates the role that Pakistan should play in the largely anarchic world of the twenty-first century in order to best serve the country’s long-term national interests. Its main aim is to lay down the parameters within which Pakistan’s grand strategy should be formulated, taking into account the evolving global and regional security environment and Pakistan’s historical experience. Provided here is an in-depth analysis and critical evaluation of the past record of Pakistan’s foreign policy within this context, bringing out its successes and failures, strengths and weaknesses. Based on these analyses, a comprehensive approach is recommended for safeguarding Pakistan’s national security and promoting its prosperity utilizing a strategy that is a marked departure from the military-dominated, uni-dimensional policies the country has followed thus far. Besides providing guidelines to Pakistan’s policy makers and intelligentsia, this book will be of interest to academics, foreign observers, and general readers in understanding the constraints and parameters within which Pakistan – a de facto nuclear-weapon state of 190 million people at the cross-roads of South Asia, Central Asia, and the Persian Gulf – must operate to safeguard its national interests in the turbulent times ahead.