Imran Malik

There is a massive paradigm shift underway in the geopolitical, geostrategic, and geoeconomic dimensions of the world. The global power and economic structures

The SCO has the potential to become the vehicle on which the Sino-Russia Combine eventually challenges the geopolitical status quo. It is therefore imperative that it now acquires a more dynamic purpose than hithertofore. It must become an authoritative, assertive, persuasive geopolitical force and project power and influence in the region and beyond. It must define its own sphere of influence and secure it. It should express itself as the formidable centre of power that it is and emerges as the security provider of choice in the larger Eurasian context. It could start radiating tangible authority at the regional-global levels by adopting collective, unified positions on vital international issues. It should become the leader of the global South and usher in a modicum of balance in geopolitical matters. It must counter the aggressive and arrogant projection of power by the US-led West in the Middle East, and East Europe and if possible, pre-empt it in the Indo-Pacific. The SCO therefore, must become an alliance, a positive force, that brings about and maintains strategic balance at the regional-global levels, redefining geopolitical imperatives in the process. Time is nigh that it expands exponentially to include amongst others Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Egypt, KSA, UAE, and other members of the GCC, ASEAN, etc. It must emerge as the most viable alternative to the current centres of power!

Disagreements, conflicts, clashes and wars are inevitable, integral parts of international relationships. Conflict management (CM) and conflict resolutions (CR) thus become the logical processes needed to deal with, control and resolve such enduring issues in interstate relations. CM denotes that the conflict has been addressed, mediated, handled and coped with pending eventual resolution whereas CR signifies that a conflict has been resolved, settled and brought to a fruitful closure. A rational progression of a conflict therefore moves from its inception to its peaceful management and on to its eventual mutually agreed to resolution.

President-elect Trump will inherit very serious geopolitical and geostrategic challenges as he steps into his second term. The Indo-Pacific confrontation and trade war with a rising, increasingly confident China, the proxy war with a resurgent Russia through Ukraine, Israel's genocide of Palestinians in Gaza and the expanding theatre of war in the GMER will demand his attention straight away. However, it is in Gaza-Palestine and GMER at large that he needs to re-visit his policies. His idea of peace there is that Israel must achieve its objectives, military, territorial, diplomatic and political swiftly and be done with this war expeditiously!

At one stage, it appeared that Pakistan was being managed and maintained in a state of controlled chaos. Now, it seems to be hurtling at breakneck speed towards a stage beyond all checks, balances, controls, and pretensions of justice, rule of law, and morality. It portends uncontrolled chaos—unqualified mayhem! The nation looks on bewildered, perplexed, and stupefied as its so-called political elite runs berserk and amok, fighting internecine battles of egos and unsatiated ambitions, quite oblivious to the violent, long-term polarisation it is engendering within the nation. Its priorities are clearly self-centred and skewed. It seems unmindful of the existential threats that beset the country, focusing solely on self-preservation and perpetuation in power. Critical national interests come a distant second, or even further down the ladder.

General Wesley Clark, a four-star US general claimed in his book, “The Clark Critique”, that post 9/11 the US had planned to take out seven Muslim

US Principal Deputy National Advisor Jon Finer claimed at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace that nuclear Pakistan's long range ballistic missile program (LRBMP) was acquiring dimensions which could bring regions outside South Asia (actually India's Nicobar and Andaman Islands) and even continental USA within its range. This was a rather ludicrous, totally unsubstantiated accusation. Could “outside South Asia” be interpreted as US' vital interests in the larger Greater Middle East Region (GMER)-South Asia Complex as well? There is a direct, sane, well-considered relationship between Pakistan's military capacities, capabilities and its intent. Period. Its military-nuclear-missile program is declared, poised and primed as India-specific and is designed to cover all potential operational hypotheses between the two longtime antagonists. It aims to establish and maintain a vital, full spectrum strategic balance in South Asia and critically deter aggression!

Pakistan's massively aggravated threat perceptions now have wider dimensions; they emanate from the larger Asian and especially the GMER-South Asian contexts. The US is the most dominant and hegemonic military power at the Asian and global levels. It has an unqualified global strategic reach and a corresponding sphere of influence. China, its ostensible adversary or competitor, has its own threat perceptions from it and continues efforts to maintain a viable strategic balance between them. This has resulted in the PLA acquiring phenomenal multidimensional, multidomain military and technological capacities and capabilities. India, which has a long-standing border dispute with China and considers itself its equal in most if not all respects, views China's burgeoning military-nuclear-missile prowess with extreme trepidation. It feels that China's evolving military might, ostensibly vis-a-vis the US, can and will be used against it too. Consequently, it feels compelled to seek a favourable strategic balance with China. In turn, Pakistan views India's enhanced military prowess, ostensibly against China, with well founded apprehensions. It fears that India's growing military capacities and capabilities can and will be employed against it too. Therefore, it too is forced to continuously upgrade its own military-nuclear-missile capacities to maintain credible, full spectrum deterrence and a viable strategic balance in the South Asian-subcontinental context. A domino effect, a cyclic progression and multidomain proliferation of military technologies, capacities and capabilities is thus a natural corollary to the clashing geostrategic objectives of the major players in South Asia and the larger Asian theatre. This critical geostrategic environment will not change unless the geopolitical imperatives of these powers/players in this region-at-large, change!

I am writing to the Government of Pakistan to call for urgent action regarding methane gas shortages. Methane gas is a necessity for daily life, yet in

Imperial powers and ultra-conservative regimes in the world are on an expansionist spree today. Their rationales to expand might differ however their desired end states and objectives are very similar. They seem to be powered by an insatiable, irrepressible impulse to expand, control, dominate and rule. Their policies seem driven by what one could call “irredentism - a state's desire to annex the territory of another state for essentially ethnic and/or historical reasons”. It however appears to be acquiring a different avatar today implying a wider meaning and a vastly expanded scope. The evolving geopolitical, geostrategic, and geoeconomic imperatives seem to combine with existing ethnic and historical motivations to create an even more powerful urge to expand, forcefully. While Israel is already manifesting it practically, others like the US and India have thus far been threatening their neighbours - regions with dire existential consequences unless they acquiesced to their patently unjust, expansionist demands!