The review of Pakistan’s foreign policy shows that Pakistan’s goals have remained more or less constant,although their scope was often redefined and new dimensions were added to them. The diplomatic and military strategies to pursue these goals varied over time. The changes in the strategies are understandable because a host of factors influence the foreign policy choices of a country,which include the dynamics of regional and international situation,the availability of human and material resources and also the priorities of the policy makers. As these change over time,foreign policy must also change in its approach to bilateral,regional and global issues and problems.
Pakistan began with an independent foreign policy in 1947. However,it tilted towards the West in a period of 7 years due to serious economic and security pressures. It maintained a policy of close interaction in the security and economic fields with the West in general and the U.S. in particular in the mid and late 1950s, the 1980s, and now since September 2001. It pursued independent non-aligned foreign policy from mid-60s to the end of the 1970s and assigned a great importance to its interaction with the Muslim states and the issues and problems of the developing world.
Pakistan is currently an active player in the global efforts for combating the religious and secular extremism and terrorism with a policy that extremism and terrorism pose serious threats to global security as well as to Pakistan’s internal peace,stability and economic development. Pakistan has made some difficult decisions in pursuing counter terrorism and for ensuring peace and stability in the immediate neighborhood in order to boost its image at the international level, restore international confidence in the ability of the Pakistani state and government to put their socio-economic house in order, and shape up as a democratically oriented,modern and enlightened Muslim polity that does not allow its territory to be used by extremist groups.
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