Russia–Ukraine War and the Indo-Pacific: A Perspective from Pakistan

Abstract

Pakistan’s relevance to the immediate theater of the Russia–Ukraine war was the presence of its prime minister in Moscow on the eve of the Russian invasion. Pakistan proclaimed neutrality but later revisited its position in the face of compelling domestic and external constraints. The trajectory of Pakistan’s response to the war and its perception of the consequences of war for itself and the Indo-Pacific region reflected its historical interaction pattern with the United States, China, Russia, and India. External strategic challenges (as the Indo-Pacific gets more competitive) along with economic predicaments constrained the military leadership and the new government to change their stance on the war and consider it an opportunity to realign with the West (its familiar historical preference).