As it gets closer to a year, Pakistan needs to review its National Security Policy in accordance with the document’s clause to ‘review and recommend updates to the Policy on a yearly basis’. Introduced on January 2022, it is the first-ever security policy in the country. It presents the idea of a new security paradigm and envisions Pakistan as an economic base of the world. The document spearheads national security to non-traditional security threats, geo-economics and climate change. On the other hand, the policy has inconsistencies and ambiguities that are preventing its effective implementation.

The ‘whole of government approach’ adopted in the policy may lead to ineffective security policies for Pakistan. It states that security challenges in Pakistan require “all organs of the state to work in close coordination to tackle increasingly complex and cross-cutting issues”. The policy misses out on suggesting a strategy for collaboration and hurdles to intra-national cooperation in the past. Provinces in Pakistan have not seen eye to eye on several national challenges like CPEC, Covid-19 Pandemic or building Kalabagh Dam. A failure on the part of the Interprovincial Coordination Division. Pakistan is also slow to adopt technological solutions like portals for integrated public services and departments to enable communication and cooperation. The security policy, amidst inter-provincial volatility and with no strategic plan for collaboration, will lead to unproductive policies despite consensus.

The policy needs to balance out secrecy and openness to security information. Open public communication for confidence building and secrecy of vulnerable information goes hand in hand with the drafting process. The National Security Policy of Pakistan’s 48 out of 110 pages is private. It uses strategic ambiguity while presenting policies. The draft suggests prioritising “equitable development initiatives that focus on uplifting our most vulnerable citizens and our least developed areas” but does clarify what they are. This balancing approach can undermine its legitimacy and hamper the confidence-building process.

The National Security Policy has a weak review and monitoring system. According to the document, National Security Committee, National Security Advisor and National Security Division are responsible for the yearly review and monitoring of policies. In reality, the office of National Security Advisor has been vacant since April 2021, and there has been no reported National Security Committee meeting after 2015. The National Security Division functions under the Rules of Business 1973 that give no guidelines on the monitoring and review process for the policy. The Rules of Business present generalized official functions for all public offices and their collaboration with other departments. It does not set any rules specifically for the Division such as personnel required or job requirements.

The policies on National Cohesion are vague and do not delve into the existing conflicts. Pakistan is facing inter-provincial disputes, political polarity, separatist elements, ethnic clashes and extremism. Post-2015, Baloch separatist movements have increased that have caused more than 30 organized violent events and 95 fatalities in 2020. Sindh and Punjab quarrel over equal water supply and, recently, gas. KPK is facing extremist elements from the Afghan Taliban and unrest from FATA and their demands to overturn the FATA merger. A standoff exists between the political parties that have led to the voting of no confidence against ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan, public protests and political uncertainty. The current situation has put Pakistan at security risk as it ranks 1st out of 162 countries on the Early Warning Project’s Statistical Risk Assessment for Mass Killing 2022-2023.

The policy recognises economic security but is slow to move towards geoeconomics. It seeks to “ensure a prosperous and growth-oriented Pakistan that is economically vibrant and a major partner in the global economy through trade, investment, and connectivity initiatives.” However, it maintains a hardline stance on foreign policy, especially with the United States and India. It calls out India for “the threat of military adventurism and non-contact warfare to our immediate east” while wishing to form peaceful ties with the country. Pakistan does not recognize that its conflict with India is economic rather than moral- if it controls Kashmir, it can manage the flow of the Indus river to the country. The policy refuses to join United States’ ‘camp-politics’ but has subscribed to the Chinese camp after forming an economic partnership despite US’s objection.

The National Security Policy gives a miss to Afghan terrorism and border security. Border security and insurgency of the Afghan Taliban has been recurring issue for the past two decades. Recently, there has been a rise in terrorist attacks from Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan, and the country has not been able to stop the influx of people from the Afghan border. However, the policy mentions only clashes at the line of control with India despite the spike in Afghan terrorist activities. According to the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies, there has been a 51 per cent increase in Afghan attacks from August 2021 to August 2022. Pakistan has an open border policy at the Afghan border for easement rights to the tribes surrounding it. Furthermore, the Taliban government does not recognize the Durand line and has called Pakistan’s fencing attempts illegal. It has allowed the influx of terrorists to move freely between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The policy does not revamp the role of the military in the new security paradigm. The Constitution of Pakistan states that armed forces are responsible for defending “Pakistan against external aggression or threat of war”. It is time that the state looks beyond these traditional military roles and expands them to economic, human and internal security. The Army has been called upon to aid civil powers in mitigating conflicts. It supported the government amidst Covid-19 and the ongoing floods. It has also increased maritime security at Gwadar Port to prevent maritime terrorism and raised Cyber National Command. The current army chief, in the new security paradigm, will have to face a fresh set of challenges including climate change, economic crisis, border security, terrorism, and cyber warfare.

While reviewing the National Security Policy, Pakistan can consider a number of measures. A portal like USA.gov that integrates information on all government agencies in Pakistan can improve the implementation of the whole government approach. To balance secrecy and public trust, the government can disseminate a clear security policy while forming a security strategy that contains vulnerable information and is thus private. There is a need to frame rules for monitoring and evaluation in line with the roles of national security bodies. Priority can be given to current internal conflicts, improving relations with the United States and India, border security, geoeconomics and climate change.