Pakistan’s Relations with its Neighbours

Pakistan shares its border with four neighbouring countries – India, China, Iran and Afghanistan. Since its inception, Pakistan had the same foreign policy for all the countries in the world – “Friendship with All”.

“Our foreign policy is one of friendliness and goodwill towards the nations of the world.”

- Founder of Pakistan Mohammad Ali Jinnah

Pakistan and its neighbours. Photo: shkazmipk.com

However, Pakistan’s good intentions were never reciprocated. In its initial years, the two active neighbours it had were India and Afghanistan; they both showed hostility towards Pakistan. They both wanted to claim Pakistan’s land which led to them being a security threat to Pakistan.

After over seven decades and over seven major phases of foreign policies, Pakistani relations with the neighbours are still dreadful. India and Afghanistan are still a major threat to Pakistan’s security while Iran has mostly stayed in the shadows of Saudi Arabia. But amid these, China has been a ray of sunshine for Pakistan.

Now that Pakistan is entering a new era of development, its Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has vowed to put “Pakistan First” in world affairs while improving ties with India and Afghanistan. Qureshi offered dialogue to India and Afghanistan to resolve the lingering disputes, saying that “talking peace is the only option”. He further emphasized the importance of peaceful relations with the neighbours by stating his intentions to bridge the trust deficit between Pakistan and other regional countries.

Qureshi, in his media talk with Afghanistan, shared his intentions to visit Kabul and form bilateral relations to help aid the future of both countries, since it is believed to be linked by geography. Next on, moving towards India, Qureshi insisted that the two countries should engage in a dialogue to resolve the never-ending tensions between the said neighbours. Even with the current Kashmir issue, Pakistan wants to solve problems diplomatically through the UN instead of with war or invasion.

“We are not just neighbours; we are atomic powers. We know the issues are tough and will not be solved overnight, but we have to engage.”

- Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi

While focusing on the defense side of the policy is important, it is also important to focus on economic development. This is where China comes in with its CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) project. It is a game-changer for Pakistan and Qureshi is currently in talks with the Chinese ambassador, Yao Jing, on how to enter the second phase of CPEC which will further the socio-economic development of Pakistan.

Lastly, Iran mostly had neutral relations with Pakistan. Its relations with Pakistan strained at times due to sectarian tensions, as Pakistani Shias claimed that they were being discriminated against under the Pakistani government's Islamization programme. But these tensions also took a back seat when Imran Khan’s government came into power. 

Now Pakistan’s policy is of cooperation for all kinds of bilateral engagement except war. Even during the most recent U.S.- Iran tensions, Pakistan clearly declared that it would help everyone establish peace but will not be part of any regional war.

AM