Pakistan

Pakistan

Formed after gaining independence in 1947 from the British empire, Pakistan continues to be plagued by internal and external instability. It has been hard for Pakistan to achieve strong economic growth over the years, but it still provides opportunities for private sector investors. Security remains a primary concern for Pakistan, as the decades-long conflict in Afghanistan and tensions with its eastern neighbor India persist.

Pakistan: The Citizens’ Fight for a Voice

Issue Brief Apr 1, 2025

Rescuing Pakistan’s economy

By Aasim M. Husain

For decades, Pakistan has struggled with a declining standard of living, skyrocketing public debt, and economic policies that have failed to address the root causes of its stagnation.
Economy & Business Middle East
Pakistan: The Citizens’ Fight for a Voice

Issue Brief Nov 14, 2024

Mapping South Asia’s digital landscape

By Mark Linscott, Gopal Nadadur

Data protection regulations are becoming critical for South Asia, where some countries are increasingly driven by digital economies.
Bangladesh Digital Policy
Pakistan: The Citizens’ Fight for a Voice

Memo to… May 16, 2024

Memo to the UN secretary-general: Establish a UN conflict prevention mechanism for the Afghanistan region

By Laurie Nathan and Nilofar Sakhi

The risk of conflict between Afghanistan and its neighbors has been rising since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, and is now at a critical point. The UN has tools that have lowered the risk of major conflict in other tense neighborhoods. It’s time to deploy them for Afghanistan.
Afghanistan Central Asia

Events

Public Event Fri, July 25, 2025 • 10:30 am ET

Pakistan’s foreign minister on tensions with India and the future of US ties

AN #ACFRONTPAGE EVENT—Pakistani Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar joins the Atlantic Council for a timely conversation on India-Pakistan tensions, regional stability, and the future of US-Pakistan relations.

Defense Policy Economy & Business Indo-Pacific Pakistan

The South Asia Center is the hub for the Atlantic Council’s analysis of the political, social, geographical, and cultural diversity of the region. ​At the intersection of South Asia and its geopolitics, SAC cultivates dialogue to shape policy and forge ties between the region and the global community.

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Content

Event Recap

May 27, 2015

Pakistan: The Citizens’ Fight for a Voice

By Nazia Khan

From a western perspective, Pakistan appears to be a country embroiled in numerous challenges, namely security and governance. But a growing movement comprised of Pakistan’s ordinary citizens seeks to reclaim the space taken by these challenges. Mohammed Jibran Nasir is at the heart of this movement, and visited the Atlantic Council in May to share […]

Pakistan

Event Recap

May 14, 2015

iFarm Pakistan: Food security, innovation, and commercialization

By Nazia Khan

Pakistan’s agriculture sector has underachieved for the last few decades, and along with structural issues, has led to a growing food security crisis in the country. Gregory Gottlieb, USAID Mission Director for Pakistan, spoke to the Atlantic Council about the growing crisis that stems from not just “how much Pakistan grows,” but from “what it […]

Pakistan

In the News

May 14, 2015

Rakisits on the on the Afghanistan-Pakistan Security Pledge

By Claude Rakisits

Defense News quotes South Asia Center Nonresident Senior Fellow Claude Rakisits on the Afghanistan-Pakistan security pledge:

Afghanistan Pakistan

EconoGraphics

May 12, 2015

Two Decades of Sovereign Debt

By Global Business & Economics

Sovereign default is considered to be a rare event. But as the lessons of the past two decades show, they are far from extraordinary. According to the IMF, the main sovereign debt restructurings from the period spanning 1998 – 2010 totaled $117.6 billion. When Greece’s 2012 default is added to that sum, it means that […]

Economy & Business Fiscal and Structural Reform

New Atlanticist

May 7, 2015

Wanted: A Real Peace in Pakistan’s Northwest

By Nazia Khan

“Peace has been restored,” Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, declared on a visit to North Waziristan earlier in May. He commended the Pakistani army for reestablishing order in the tribal agency that abuts Afghanistan and has been used as a safe haven by a variety militant groups. He also called on those displaced by the […]

Pakistan

Press Release

Apr 29, 2015

New Atlantic Council Brief Calls for a Reimagining of Pakistan’s Militia Policy

By Atlantic Council

The Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center today launched a new issue brief entitled “Reimagining Pakistan’s Militia Policy.” Written by the Center’s US Pakistan Program Exchange Fellow Yelena Biberman, the brief argues that Pakistan’s unwillingness to crack down on all terrorist groups is more a product of cold calculation than ideological shortsightedness, and calls for powerful […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 28, 2015

Another Voice Silenced in Pakistan

By Huma Haque

It was Friday afternoon and as I was getting ready for the weekend, news broke that Sabeen Mahmud, director of The Second Floor (T2F), had been shot dead in Karachi. Even after reading it a few times, it just did not sink in. I stared blankly. The death of Pakistan’s leading human-rights activist is a […]

Pakistan

Issue Brief

Apr 27, 2015

Reimagining Pakistan’s militia policy

By Yelena Biberman

If ever a turning point seemed inevitable in Pakistan’s militia policy, it was in the aftermath of the Peshawar school massacre in December 2014. Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) killed 152 people, 133 of them children, in the bloodiest terrorist attack in Pakistan’s history. The carnage sparked an unprecedented national dialogue about the costs and contradictions of […]

Arms Control Conflict

In the News

Apr 19, 2015

Metzl on China and Pakistan’s Economic Plans

By Jamie Metzl

Brent Scowcroft Center Nonresident Senior Fellow for Technology and National Security Jamie Metzl joins CNN to discuss the $46 billion energy and infrastructure deal between China and Pakistan, focusing on the security implications of the deal:

China Pakistan

In the News

Apr 16, 2015

Rehman on the China-Pakistan Submarine Sale

By Iskander Rehman

Bloomberg quotes South Asia Center Nonresident Fellow Iskander Rehman on China’s sale of eight submarines to Pakistan:

China Pakistan
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Experts

Staff

Manal Fatima

Assistant Director, Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Middle East North Africa

Fellow

Nik Foster

Nonresident Fellow

Global China Hub

China Energy & Environment

Fellow

Erum Haider

Assistant Professor, Political Science and Environmental Studies, The College of Wooster

South Asia Center

Civil Society Economy & Business

Fellow

Hameed Hakimi

Nonresident Senior Fellow

South Asia Center

Migration Security & Defense

Staff

Michael Kugelman

Resident Senior Fellow, South Asia

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Afghanistan Bangladesh

Fellow

Paul D. Miller

Nonresident Senior Fellow

GeoStrategy Initiative Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Pakistan
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