Significance of the strategic location of Pakistan in South Asia

Running head: RESEARCH ENQUIRY
RESEARCH ENQUIRY
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Topic: Significance of the strategic location of Pakistan in South Asia
1. Research questions
The research question for the study will be:
 What are the possible opportunities of Pakistan for becoming a great power?
 How the gateway to Central Asia contributed to the strategic position of Pakistan?
 What is the position of Pakistan after CPEC inception?
 How far the geographical position of Pakistan assist in linking the chain of Muslim
countries?
 How does the nuclear capability of Pakistan shape its strategic establishment in South-
East Asia?
2. Objective of the research
The objective of undertaking the research will be to identify the significance of the strategic
location of Pakistan in South Asia.
3. Aims of the research
The aims of the research are:
 To examine the possible opportunities of Pakistan for becoming a great power
 To evaluate the manner in which the gateway to Central Asia contributed to the strategic
position of Pakistan
 To evaluate the position of Pakistan after CPEC inception
 To identify the manner in which the geographical position of Pakistan assist in linking the
chain of Muslim countries

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 To inspect the manner in which the nuclear capability of Pakistan shape its strategic
establishment in South-East Asia
4. Literature review
4.1 Geo-strategic position of Pakistan
As far as the power structure or power nexus in the South-East Asia is concerned, it can
be argued that besides the intervention of China, Pakistan is the most important country followed
by India. Enmity between India and Pakistan has been escalated into international issue so that it
is essential for Pakistan to set its geo-political standpoint highly and effectively. Its extensive
diplomatic relation all over the worlds with a strong geo-political position helps Pakistan to
develop the influence in the South-East Asian region. In this regard, Ali (2015) seen that the
geographical barriers of deserted regions of Afghanistan in Easter side, the presence of the great
Himalayan mountain in the Northern province and the Arabian sea in the south provide a
geographical fortress that help Pakistan to develop itself and protect the sovereignty. According
to Mehmood (2014) during the inception of Pakistan in 1947, the hostility between Russia and
USA led to great advantage for the newly independent countries. Pakistan got the support of
USA. Currently, the amicable ties with China further bolsters the strategic position of Pakistan
effectively
Moreover, Javaid and Javaid (2016) articulated that the strategic geopolitical position
provides the only gateway to connect to the Central Asian region. As the recent global pressure
from the international community over Pakistan’s role in combating terrorism, it is important for
the country to find out new power nexus and Central Asia can be the best hope for Pakistan.
From that point of view, Pakistan plays a pertinent role in order to cherish an exclusive power to

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rejoice its diplomacy as well as the economic infrastructure. As Naseem and Younas (2017)
opined that since the inception Pakistan has got enough support from the Muslim World and due
to share a link between Central and South Asia, Pakistan witness direct interaction of both the
parts. Therefore, a pan-Islamic aspiration blended with the social and economic developments
are the key factors for the elevation of Pakistan in the South-East Asian diplomacy.
Furthermore, in Middle East the political power nexus is fragmented into two power
camps Iran and Saudi Arabia. As a result of that due to religious conflict and clash of interest in
political influence, the conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia became so much escalated. In this
regard, Alvi (2014) mentioned that the role of Pakistan is highly important which will help to
restore peace and integrity within the Central and West Asian Islamic states. As a matter of fact,
Hashemi and Postel (2017) argued that amidst of this situation Pakistan took the advantage of
such political upheaval and intended to establish its political influence over the region.
4.2 Significance in South-East Asia
Only Islamic country in South-East Asia and the first Islamic country empowered with
nuclear weapon create a global exposure for Pakistan effectively. The recent report of Kristensen
and Norris (2015) stated that Pakistan is the 5th largest nuclear super power with a stockpile of
140 to 150 nuclear warheads. Rapid development in the nuclear infrastructure and adequate aid
from China make Pakistan one of the powerful nations across the world. It can be argued that
havoc power struggle between India and Pakistan leads to a chaos in the South Asian region and
to overpower Indian influence on South-East Asian countries, Pakistan develops a check and
balance of control through empowering itself with nuclear power.