Pakistan’s Middle Power Diplomacy In a Multipolar World: Balancing Between China and the West

Clicks: 1
ID: 312189
2025
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal

Ranked #263 of 395 articles by views in Social Sciences & Humanity Research Review

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 395 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Abstract
The shift from a unipolar to multipolar world order has impacted the strategic thinking of states, especially middle powers. Pakistan in this regard is a complex yet insightful case study. Pakistan sits at the epicenter of several geopolitical contestations. It lies between China and Western interests which makes it an ideal candidate for proxy wars. This allows countries to project power without risking direct confrontation, which preserves international relations. Power projection while attempting to save face has been termed strategic hedging and Pakistan's evolving foreign policy exemplifies this through middle power diplomacy. This paper assesses her policies incorporating western ties, especially with the US and EU ,alongside growing Sino-Pak relations. It argues that she is trying to maintain balance between Beijing’s tightening grip and Western actors using multilateral platforms for global economic engagement as well as playing geopolitics through Pakistan’s geostrategic location. Through active participation in these forums, Pakistan has adopted a blend of alignment with de facto independence driven by realism towards global political trends. This paper follows Pakistan's diplomatic shifts from the Cold War to today using secondary sources. It employs middle power theory to explain reasons for Pakistan’s participation in initiatives like the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and its role in global organizations such as the UN and OIC, along with balancing its position during global conflicts. The research aims to address the gap in existing literature by analyzing Pakistan's foreign policy through a coherent theoretical lens. It claims that despite facing politically volatile and economically strained conditions, Pakistan is framing its policies more akin to those of middle powers dealing with intricate global dynamics.
Reference Key
imported_1776682822_69e60746a5528 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Asadullah Javed
Journal Social Sciences & Humanity Research Review
Year 2025
DOI
10.63468/sshrr.039
URL
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.