http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20504 Sat, 04 Apr 2026 12:26:36 GMT 2026-04-04T12:26:36Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20514 The Role of Soft Power in Pakistan’s Foreign Policy towards Afghanistan (2004-2020) Muhammad Khalid Saifullah Khan, 01-288191-002 This PhD thesis explores Pakistan's soft power approach towards Afghanistan, a neighbouring country with complex and often strained bilateral relations. Since 1947, Pakistan has sought to use soft power to address issues such as the Durand Line, trade, and Afghan refugees. After Afghanistan's transition to a democratic government in 2001, Pakistan committed $1 billion to soft power programmes by 2021. However, despite these efforts, Pakistan’s soft power failed to significantly improve relations with Afghanistan during its two decades of democracy, as seen through negative statements from Afghan leaders, border conflicts, and anti-Pakistan protests. The study fills a gap in the existing literature by providing a comprehensive analysis of Pakistan’s soft power and its challenges. It examines Pakistan's soft power under four different political parties – PML-Q, PPP, PML-N, and PTI – and identifies key obstacles and opportunities for improvement. A soft power framework is proposed, consisting of four pillars: actors, resources, strategies, and outcomes. These include state and non-state actors, resources such as culture, values, and foreign policy, and strategies like public and humanitarian diplomacy. Outcomes are assessed through Afghan leaders' statements and government actions. The research investigates how Pakistan can better operationalise its soft power towards Afghanistan to improve bilateral relations and offers strategies for enhancing its effectiveness. The study concludes that Pakistan has significant soft power potential, but weak strategies and poor implementation limit its success. Recommendations include establishing Pakistani cultural centres, improving diplomatic capabilities, providing better education and health services for Afghans, and modernising refugee policies. The study contributes to the literature on soft power in developing countries and offers a framework for reforming Pakistan's soft power strategy in South Asia Supervised by Dr. Irfan Hussain Qaisrani Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20514 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20516 Great Power Competition between the United States and China: Implications for Pakistan Syed Muhammad Saad Zaidi, 01-288201-002 In global politics, in the last decade and a half, a great power competition between the United States (US) and China has emerged, where China, a rising power, is blatantly challenging the US-led unipolar moment. China is able to pose a serious threat to the US-led liberal world order due to the fact that it has been effectively challenging the US primacy; it has overtaken the US in the economic realm, it is now considered to be the US’ peer-competitor in military domain, and by establishing one after the other multilateral institutions, both political and financial, it is undermining the US’ diplomatic might. The US, in turn, to contain China’s rise has too promulgated successive policies and strategies; from the Pivot to Asia and Trade Wars to ganging up with India. The extent of the threat posed by China can be understood from the fact that for the first-time in the National Security Strategy 2017 the US has designated China as a revisionist state threatening the existing world order. The US-China geostrategic competition has affected global politics, as both sides are using all resources in hand – in the US’ case coercion too – to increase its geopolitical clout. Consequently, across the globe alliances are being redrawn; old foes are now allies and vice versa. Amidst this complex convoluted competition, Pakistan faces a strategic dilemma; as historically it has been able to maintain cordial ties with both states, Not only does Pakistan’s economic conditions and security state prevents it from choosing a side, but also and more importantly it has learnt from the politics of the Cold War that picking a side in a great power competition has less benefits than drawbacks. This study determines by application of the Realist paradigm the extent of the US-China great power competition; the effects of this geostrategic competition on global politics as well as South Asian politics; and the effects on Pakistan’s foreign policy choices. Supervised by Dr. Adam Saud Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20516 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20515 Achieving Regional Integration through BRI (A Case Study of CPEC & BCIM-EC) Awais, 01-288191-001 South Asia suffers from number of socio-economic and political problems that restricted the overall growth and development of the region. To address these problems, there is a dire need to build up infrastructure and enhance regional connectivity. This study argues that Belt & Road Initiative (BRI) of China is one of the greatest connectivity projects on one hand that can benefit South Asia through its two of understudied economic corridors specified for South Asia and a soft hegemonic move to dominate in world. The main research question of this study is to explore the prospects of trade, investment, infrastructure development and social relations that can be enhanced through these two corridors among the major participating countries of South Asia. It also studies geostrategic gains and losses for the participating countries of these corridors. A combined study of these two corridors with respect to their potentials for South Asia and geostrategic gains and losses of the participating countries is also limited that gave a research gap to fill. This study is mainly interpreted under theories of complex interdependence and prospect theory. This is primarily a qualitative study based on the primary and secondary data collected from various interviews, official documents, policies, reports, comments, opinion and statements of various scholars and leaders of participating states. This study finds out that these two corridors if executed can greatly help in uplifting South Asia through building infrastructure development projects like Gwadar Port, Chittagong Port and various networks of corridors both rail and road based. It paves the way for the regional connectivity and economic integration in short term and may achieve regional integration in the end if the participating countries amicably negotiate their geostrategic gains and losses. India, one of the antagonists of these corridors needs to review its policy towards BRI and China to also endeavor for accommodating India’s reservations for the larger interest of region. Keywords: Belt and Road Initiative, Silk Road Economic Belt, 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar-Economic Corridor, Sea Lines of Communications, Regional Integration, Gwadar Port, Geostrategic Gains and Losses Supervised by Dr. Adam Saud Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/20515 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z