Summary US expert Daniel Markey says Pakistan’s military and diplomatic importance is growing as stronger ties with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye weaken India’s efforts to isolate Islamabad.
WASHINGTON (Dunya News) – Pakistan’s regional military and diplomatic importance has increased, while India’s efforts to isolate Islamabad in the region appear to be losing effectiveness, prominent US foreign policy expert Daniel Markey has said.
In an interview with Indian news platform The Wire, Markey described growing cooperation between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye as a significant achievement for Islamabad.
He said Pakistan’s closer ties with Gulf powers were weakening India’s efforts to keep Islamabad away from the Middle East. He added that trilateral cooperation between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye could strengthen Pakistan’s defence capabilities, financial support and regional influence.
According to Markey, Pakistan’s growing regional alliances are limiting India’s diplomatic influence, military freedom of action and access to the Gulf region.
The US expert said India had spent billions of dollars establishing special relations in the Middle East. However, he said Pakistan’s effective diplomacy was enabling Islamabad to once again emerge as a centre of regional power.
He said growing cooperation between Pakistan and its regional partners could force India to think several times before taking any military action or dangerous step along the border. According to him, the development had also weakened India’s narrative that Pakistan had lost its importance in regional affairs.
Markey further said Pakistan’s nuclear, conventional and advanced technological defence capabilities remained a major obstacle to India’s unilateral regional dominance. He added that India’s diplomatic strategy against Pakistan was ultimately contributing to an increase in Islamabad’s regional importance.
He said Pakistan had long played an important role in regional crises through its battle-tested military and had demonstrated its strategic importance during the two-decade war in Afghanistan.
It is pertinent to note that Daniel Markey has researched and analysed Pakistan and South Asian affairs for a long time. His recent writings have also focused on Pakistan-US relations and the changing geopolitics of the region.
