Pakistan's Foreign Policy Towards Iran and Saudi Arabia Strategic Balancing and Geopolitical Challenges, 2015-2025

Abstract

Foreign policy of Pakistan with regard to Iran and Saudi Arabia has had to consider the complex geopolitical situation in which the foreign policy of Pakistan is highly linked with security, economic and financial issues, ideological and great-power pressures. This research analyzes how these geopolitical trends affect Pakistan's foreign policy approach and strategic equilibrium in relation to Iran and Saudi Arabia. On this score, as the findings are given in the report, the foreign policy of the country can be interpreted as strategic hedging rather than non-alignment. In Pakistan’s case, strategic hedging becomes clear when one notes that Islamabad has retained its economic and military relations with Saudi Arabia and maintains its border security with Iran. The research employs a qualitative, explanatory and analytical case study approach utilizing primary data sources and secondary data sources. The study concludes that Pakistan has managed to keep away any major diplomatic confrontation with either Saudi Arabia or Iran, although there is still the issue of its economic dependency, its vulnerability to sanctions, frontier insecurity, and changes in its regional alliances. This research paper recommends that future policy should ensure that Pakistan develops an explicit national interest paradigm, decrease dependence on unilateral bailouts, improve multilateral diplomacy, and carefully take advantage of Chinese diplomacy.