This book offers a critical re-examination of Pakistan’s foreign policy by bringing together diverse scholarly voices from within Pakistan and the global academic diaspora. Moving beyond traditional realist frameworks and India-centric threat narratives, this book interrogates the structural forces such as civil-military relations, strategic militarization, and ideological undercurrents, that have historically shaped the country’s international engagements. It highlights the militarized character of the Pakistani state and explores how this dynamic continues to influence its foreign policy formulation in the twenty-first century.

Contributors analyze Pakistan’s evolving posture in response to major global developments such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the rise of China, and the intensification of US-China rivalries, often referred to as the New Cold War. At the same time, this book expands the scope of analysis by incorporating underexplored but increasingly relevant themes like the role of public opinion, mediatization, heritage diplomacy, and the securitization of resources like water. These interdisciplinary perspectives enable a more nuanced and multifaceted understanding of Pakistan’s foreign relations in a shifting global landscape.

With contributions from both emerging and established scholars, including several women researchers across South Asia, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific, this book not only bridges theoretical and empirical gaps in the literature but also offers fresh analytical frameworks to assess Pakistan’s foreign policy behavior.

Dr. Farooq Sulehria is an assistant professor in the Department of Liberal Arts at Beaconhouse National University, Lahore. He holds a Ph.D. in Development Studies and an MA in Global Media from SOAS, University of London. 

Dr. Julian Spencer-Churchill is an associate professor at Concordia University, Montreal. His research focuses on security and strategic studies, the study of state and non-state power, and the causes of war and peace.