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Nawaz Sharif's return as the Prime Minister of Pakistan in early June this year marks a signpost from where a more meaningful relationship between India and Pakistan could be forged. The bilateral relationship had of late been mired in mistrust and often meaningless rhetoric. The previous civilian government in Pakistan was paralysed by its own ineptitude. An equally incoherent position in New Delhi has allowed the crucial relationship to drift.
The synchronised protest marches undertaken by Imran Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and cleric Tahir-ul Qadri, chairman of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), culminated in a combined sit-in outside the Parliament building in Islamabad.
The media has been working overtime to sow divisions in Sharif’s party and family.
In Pakistan, there is a sense of disillusionment with the government, and forme Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, an astute politician, obviously sees an opportunity in it for his party PML(N) in the 2013 election. But it is not likely to be an easy road.
While Dr. Manmohan Singh must necessarily wait for Nawaz Sharif to determine the pace at which he might be comfortable moving forward with India, in the case of Bangladesh, the burden is entirely on Delhi to implement the historic agreements it had negotiated with Dhaka.
National Accountability Bureau is working overtime to 'fix' the former prime minister and his family.
If Nawaz Sharif really believes that Islamic insurgency has no role to play in Indo-Pakistan relations henceforth, he should enforce immediate control and effectively neutralise LeT and its parallel organisation, the Jamat-ud-Dawa.
There are two options in front of the former Pakistan PM — jail or self-exile.
It can be very tempting to not be overly optimistic following the recent meeting between Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif in Ufa, Russia. There is a sense of familiarity to the manner in which India-Pakistan relations unfold.
The Supreme Court's decision has given a huge jolt to the fragile democratic system. And, Sharif's political legacy is lying in tatters.
This issue brief assesses the enduring political influence of the military in Pakistan. It delves into the historical, social, and geopolitical factors that have propelled the military's rise in the nation's governance structure. The brief also examines the military-bureaucratic nexus and its role in perpetuating military dominance, and the implications of a weak civil society and its constrained ability to counterbalance military power.
Prolonged periods of military rule in Pakistan have enabled the military to penetrate all structures of the Pakistani state. Political parties, the judiciary, bureaucracy, and the media — today all have their share of pro-khaki elements. Therefore, a military coup d’etat is no longer the only way to unseat a democratically elected political leader who may have differences with the Army. Indeed, if former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had compl
President Pervez Musharraf wrested power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup on October 12, 1999. In the five years since then, Pakistan has found itself increasingly enmeshed in sectarian violence, economic disaster, political collapse and diplomatic isolation.
For Modi, Nawaz Sharif's willingness to show up at the launch of his government is a political bonus. If Modi is luckier than Manmohan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he might make some sustainable progress with Pakistan.
Poor choices and domestic turmoil have hindered India’s economic transformation
Pakistan's first transfer of power between elected governments is indeed a milestone, but how strong a precedent it will set is very much dependent on the performance of Nawaz Sharif and the PML-N. Confidence in civilian institutions, high voter turnout aside, remains dreadfully low.
The Pakistan army has commenced openly supporting internal religious and fundamentalist groups. If these parties rise to power, Pakistan’s internal
At the Manmohan Singh-Nawaz Sharif meeting, it was agreed that the incidents across the LoC would be taken up by the DGMOs of both the countries. This seems to be the only worthwhile outcome of the meeting, though it remains to be seen how effective this arrangement would be. Sharif also assured the Indian Prime Minister that the most favoured nation protocol would be extended to India in order to facilitate trade between the two countries.
The Kargil military conflict of 1999 between India and Pakistan came in the wake of the "bhai-bhai" ("we are brothers") euphoria generated by the bus ride of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the then Prime Minister, to Lahore and his high-profile meeting with Mr.Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan's then Prime Minister. In the euphoria, we let ourselves be caught napping by the Pakistan Army in the heights of Kargil.
There is a slim chance that any substantive dialogue between Modi and Sharif could take place in Astana — India realises it will not benefit from ta
The Modi government has declared that virtually everyone who opposes its policies in Jammu and Kashmir is a terrorist. This makes it difficult to find a way out of the Kashmir miasma.
Pakistan Muslim League-N leader Nawaz Sharif's decision to withdraw support to the coalition government led by Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has only pushed Pakistan deeper into political crisis which is bound to encourage terrorist and extremist groups to consolidate their position in a nuclear-powered state staggering on the verge of becoming a dysfunctional, if not failed, state.
Imran Khan appears to have achieved what was supposed to be impossible and unacceptable—dividing the Pakistan Army.
In the upcoming elections, the likelihood of a new political leadership emerging in Pakistan which has a new approach and narrative remains slim
The power of the people has upended all expectations and predictions in this Pakistan election
What magnifies Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif's dilemma in picking up a successor to Gen Kayani is his own experience of picking Pervez Musharraf way down the seniority line to lead the army and regretting it forever. He will not like to repeat his past folly.
Of the many pressing challenges and crises facing Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the one which is perhaps the most difficult to address is the sectarian blood-letting that has been tearing the social fabric of Pakistan for decades now.
People have voted against the military’s political favourites but General Munir still gets to cook up the next coalition government
No matter the winner, Pakistan’s economy will make it difficult for the incoming government to meet election promises
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's visit to the ISI HQ at Aabpara, Islamabad, on July 11 has raised eyebrows over its timing and content. Sharif and his ministerial colleagues stayed at the ISI HQ for five hours and were briefed by the chiefs of the Army and the ISI.
Talking about the challenges confronting the Nawaz Sharif government in Pakistan and the implications of the political transition on the region, Dr. Frederic Grare said the problems facing his government are huge, which cannot be resolved overnight and need long-term solutions.
Going by the frequency and nature of the TTP attacks, the militant group seems to be playing a larger game aimed at drawing the armed forces deeper into a protracted conflict in the tribal areas with the US withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in mind. For the Nawaz Sharif government, and the military, the options are fast running out.
The Nawaz Sharif government's offer of the olive branch to TTP seems more like an act of desperation than a serious attempt to bring about stability in the country. As the previous deals with militants have shown, the outcomes have favoured militants more than the governments.
The 2024 Pakistani elections is a significant indicator of the increasing vulnerability of the military in the nation's political landscape and the po
The ‘deep state’ has always worked with a king’s party, and there have always been politicians willing to oblige.
Phone calls are making waves with Nawaz Sharif and Tsai Ingwen - showing there is no indicator on which way US will go under new presidency
After the Ladakh intrusion, Delhi has sensibly stepped up the conversation on LAC management with Beijing. The recent violence on the LoC demands the same with Islamabad. When he meets Nawaz Sharif in New York next month, Manmohan Singh must seek Pakistan's renewed political support for the LoC ceasefire and an agreement to translate that commitment into a military reality.
For all intents and purposes, this government is here to stay so long as it doesn’t fall out with the military
