PAKISTAN’S VISION FOR NATIONAL SECURITY

Abstract

Pakistan does not have a formal national security doctrine or a composite national
security strategy but the contours and ingredients of its national security policy are well
known. The discussion on national security has been marred in the past by the controversy over the establishment and the role of the National Security Committee bit we
have moved past that stage. Since its birth, Pakistan’s decision makers have centered
national security on physical security of the state, quest for democracy, good governance,
economic development, and social welfare. Pakistan’s ideology, in one form or the other,
has been the golden thread in the fabric of national security. Throughout its history,
Pakistan has been more focused on its survival rather than growth because of the
persistent external threats and political uncertainty in the country. But after acquiring
nuclear capability and a modicum of economic growth, Pakistan has found its strategic
moorings and, despite transient setbacks, is on its way to becoming a major military and
economic power.