Terrorism: A Challenge of Pakistan’s Foreign Policy and Way Forward

Abstract

Terrorism is a complex phenomenon of today‟s world. By implication, it entails violence, threat and designs to generate fear in the targets. This phenomenon has crossed the borders across the regions and further extended to the states, which by historical, political, ethnic, racial commonalties, geographical compulsions or political circumstances interlocked into a situation to provide moral, material, logistical support for freedom and independence movements. Pakistan is facing the acute consequences of this type of enigmatic situation. Pakistan is having a paradoxical situation and terrorism in a real sense has become a foreign policy challenge. Its foreign policy and National Security Policy merged in terms of objectives, tools, targets and instruments. Pakistan‟s strategic priorities in South Asia to have a friendly government in Afghanistan, resolve Kashmir issue in line with the desires of Kashmiris, division plan of subcontinent of 1947 and General Assembly Resolutions of 1948, led it to use some non- state actors or internationally labelled organizations in Kashmir and Afghanistan. This study has evaluated the menace of terrorism as a foreign policy challenge with special reference to Pakistan as a case study. For this purpose, some questions were formulated and a determined effort has been made to find out the answers. The descriptive, historical and analytical standpoints were undertaken during the course of research. A way forward has also been suggested to rectify the Lacunas and negative aspersions cast by the international community.