South Asian Quadrangular Conundrum: Pakistan, China, India, and the USA – Post-2024 Projections
Keywords:
Quadrilateral relations, Pakistan, India, China, USAAbstract
South Asia, owing to its geostrategic importance, wealth of natural resources, major transport-hub connecting many parts of the world, and the presence of two nuclear powers, invites the attention of key global players who are keen to exert their influence in the region. The third decade of the 21st century has proved that both USA and China have taken great interest in the affairs of the region. This justifies the involvement of USA and China in the affairs of South Asia and involves both India and Pakistan, creating a situation, this study calls ‘quadrangular conundrum’. This quadrilateral conundrum invites attention to offer prediction about future. This paper studies the past and current ever-evolving dynamics of quadrilateral relations among the four key players engaged in South Asian region: Pakistan, China, India, and the USA specifically underlining the prevalent challenges, concerns, and opportunities. We present a retrospective view of the bilateral, trilateral, and quadrilateral ties among the top actors relevant to Pakistan. We specify the spectrum of these multidimensional ties in the domain of diplomatic, economic, and security spheres and bring in the current picture. In the end, this paper submits politico-economic and security scenario with a number of predictions on probable cooperation, competition and confrontation. It particularly focuses on Pakistan’s geostrategic, security, and economic concerns. We suggest that by pursuing a policy of cooperation and competition, Pakistan can attend all its domestic and foreign concerns by avoiding its engagement in any sort of confrontation.
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