Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program was established in 1972 by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, then the President of Pakistan. India’s 1974 testing of a nuclear “device” and hostile statements by the Indian leadership, gave Pakistan’s nuclear program a new momentum. Through the late 1970s, Pakistan’s program acquired sensitive uranium enrichment technology and expertise. The 1975 arrival of Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan considerably advanced these efforts. Dr. Khan was a German-trained metallurgist who brought with him knowledge of gas centrifuge technologies that he had acquired through his position at the classified URENCO uranium enrichment plant in the Netherlands. He was put in charge of building, equipping and operating Pakistan’s Kahuta facility, which was established in 1976. Under Khan’s direction, Pakistan employed an extensive clandestine network in order to obtain the necessary materials and technology for its developing uranium enrichment capabilities.

In 1985, Pakistan crossed the threshold of weapons-grade uranium production, and by 1986 it is thought to have produced enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon. Pakistan continued advancing its uranium enrichment program, and according to Pakistani sources, the nation acquired the ability to carry out a nuclear explosion in 1987.As a response to India conducting five nuclear tests on 11 and 13 May,1998 Pakistan tested its nuclear devices on 28 May. The Pakistani Atomic Energy Commission reported that the five nuclear tests conducted on May 28 generated a seismic signal of 5.0 on the Richter scale, with a total yield of up to 40 KT (equivalent TNT). Dr. A.Q. Khan claimed that one device was a boosted fission device and that the other four were sub-kiloton nuclear devices. Details are reflected as follows:

Pakistan’s nuclear tests were followed by the February 1999 Lahore Agreements between Prime Ministers Vajpayee and Sharif. The agreements included confidence building measures such as advance notice of ballistic missile testing and a continuation of their unilateral moratoria on nuclear testing.

Pakistan’s nuclear program is based primarily on highly enriched uranium (HEU), which is produced at the A. Q. Khan research laboratory at Kahuta, a gas centrifuge uranium enrichment facility. The Kahuta facility has been in operation since the early 1980s. By the early 1990s, Kahuta had an estimated 3,000 centrifuges in operation, and Pakistan continued its pursuit of expanded uranium enrichment capabilities.

In the 1990s Pakistan began to pursue plutonium production capabilities. With Chinese assistance, Pakistan built the 40 MWt (megawatt thermal) Khusab research reactor at Joharabad, and in April 1998, Pakistan announced that the reactor was operational. According to public statements made by US officials, this heavy water reactor generates an estimated 8-10 kilotons of weapons grade plutonium per year, which is enough for one to two nuclear weapons. The reactor could also produce tritium if it were loaded with lithium-6. Khusab’s plutonium production capacity could allow Pakistan to develop lighter nuclear warheads that would be easier to deliver with a ballistic missile.

According to The Nuclear Notebook of the Federation of American Scientists, by 2021 Pakistan has 165 HEU-based nuclear warheads. This puts Pakistan ahead of Indian stockpiles of nuclear warheads. Pakistan like its arch rival India, also has a sea based second strike capability.    Pakistan’s nuclear warheads are based on an implosion design that uses a solid core of highly enriched uranium and requires an estimated 15-20 kg of material per warhead. According to Carnegie, Pakistan has also produced a small but unknown quantity of weapons grade plutonium, which is sufficient for an estimated 5-10 nuclear weapons.

Pakistan is pursuing a “full spectrum deterrence posture” which includes long range missiles and aircrafts for strategic missions as well as several short-range lower yield nuclear capable weapon systems in order to counter military threats below strategic level. The Nuclear and Missiles programs and its employment are handled by Strategic Planning Division (SPD), which is headed by a three-star general and works under the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff. The SPD is headed by the Prime Minister of Pakistan and its important meetings, depending on the environments are attended by relevant federal ministers, besides all the services chiefs.

Pakistan’s rapidly evolving missile arsenal forms an important part of its defense strategy for offsetting the significant conventional military advantages of its main rival, India. Pakistan’s arsenal consists primarily of mobile short and medium-range ballistic missiles, but it is also making significant strides in its cruise missile capability. Pakistan’s combined strategic forces allows it to target almost any point in India, and is now working more advanced technology such as multiple independent reentry vehicles (MIRV) to complicate developing Indian missile defense efforts. Pakistan has received significant technical assistance from China on its nuclear and missile programs.

Pakistan is pursuing an Offensive-Defense and its war fighting strategy is based on maintaining both a Conventional and Nuclear deterrence. It has fought three major wars and many skirmishes with India due to the unresolved issue of Jammu and Kashmir, which according to British formula for the division of Indian sub-continent in 1947, should have been part of Pakistan, being a Muslim majority state. The Nuclear program has given Pakistan the longest era of peace since the last war of 1971. Being only Muslim Nuclear-powered state, its program is focus of subversion by many hostile states. The safety standards applied to the nuclear reactors and the war heads have been continuously monitored by International Atomic Energy Commission and other world bodies and have been acclaimed. As a responsible nuclear state, Pakistan remains committed to the observance of highest safety standards and its prime use as a deterrence against any aggression.

As an initiative of Chinese concept of Belt & Road ( B&R) to  improve global linkages and trade,China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) , the only bi lateral initiative of B&R was announced in 2013.CPEC is primarily a regional framework of connectivity as part of the BRI which is a framework of intercontinental connectivity. CPEC is perceived not only to benefit China and Pakistan but will have positive impact on the neighboring countries like Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asian Republic. The focus on enhancement of geographical linkages with improved road, rail and air transportation system will promote frequent and free exchanges of growth and people to people contacts. The project also aims at enhancing understanding through academic, cultural and regional knowledge and activity of higher volume of flow of trade and businesses. This is likely to have more optimal businesses and enhancement of co-operation by win-win model and  will result in well connected, integrated region of shared destiny, harmony and development. CPEC when implemented will be a ‘ game changer’ for the people of Pakistan and Southern Chinese region, mostly populated by Muslims. It will improve their  lives  by building an economic corridor promoting bilateral connectivity, construction, explore potential bilateral investment, economic and trade, logistics and people to people contact for regional connectivity. While it is considered a 60 billion dollar project so far around 20+ billion dollar worth of projects have been undertaken. The project has the completion date of 2030.

The areas of cooperation envisioned under CPEC include:

• Integrated Transport & IT systems including Road, Rail, Port, Air and Data Communication Channels
• Energy Cooperation
• Spatial Layout, Functional Zones, Industries and Industrial Parks
• Agricultural Development
• Socio-Economic Development (Poverty Alleviation, Medical Treatment, Education, Water Supply, Vocational Training)
• Tourism Cooperation & People to People Communication
• Cooperation in Livelihood Areas
• Financial Cooperation
• Human Resource Development

For the implementation of CPEC projects the two sides have agreed to set up a 1+4 cooperation mode in which the two sides take CPEC as the Core while prioritizing development of Gwadar, Energy, Transport Infrastructure and Industrial Cooperation. The two countries have set up a mechanism of coordination for the construction of CPEC.

Cooperation Mechanism

The goals set in the Long-Term Plan of CPEC are divided into short, medium and long term as given below.

• By 2020, the CPEC strive to take the initial shape, major bottlenecks to Pakistan’s economic and social development shall be basically addressed, and the CPEC shall start to boost the economic growth along it for both countries.
• By 2025, the CPEC building strive to be basically done, the industrial system approximately complete, major economic functions brought into play in a holistic way, the people’s livelihood along the CPEC significantly improved, regional economic development more balanced, and all the goals of Vision 2025 of Pakistan achieved.
• By 2030, the CPEC building strive to be entirely accomplished, the endogenous mechanism for sustainable economic growth in place, the CPEC’s role in stimulating economic growth in Central Asia and South Asia brought into holistic play, and South Asia shall grow into an international economic zone with global influence.

CPEC has largely achieved the short-term objectives (almost 60 percent projects have been completed so far), however the speed of implementation and further investments have slowed down for several reasons. Given below are some constrains which have been influencing the speedy construction of CPEC:-

1. The geo-political environment in South Asia is inherently unstable. More over the Indian interference in the internal affairs of Pakistan and its open opposition to the construction of CPEC has adversely affected.
2. International players especially the US and its allies which have opposed construction of BRI have been opposing the CPEC and creating hindrances both by open opposition and tacit sabotage.
3. The political instability and divergent orientation of various political parties have created several controversies from the beginning. The 18^th Constitutional amendment has given greater powers to the provinces and the smaller and less developed provinces have grievances against the Central Government and Punjab province.This has resulted in demanding more shares in CPEC projects by the smaller provinces.
4. The religious extremism which is reflected in the shape of terrorist organizations such as Tahrek e Taliban ( Pakistan )(TPP) and some others are a constant threat to the state and CPEC.
5. The management capacity of the Pakistani bureaucracy and other organizations involved in the CPEC is relatively limited and different from the common Chinese practices and speed to accomplish tasks.
6. A lot of negative propaganda initiated by the enemies of China and Pakistan have created grave misperceptions which must be removed by building counter narrative.

During recent visit of Prime Minister Imran Khan to China, in February, 2022 most of the irritants in the furtherance of CPEC have been removed and work on Phase II projects will now commence . This includes an oil refinery at Gawadar, deep sea port and setting up of mega technical training facility. Prospects for future development of CPEC would largely depend on mitigating the above mention threats and introducing stringent reforms in institutional and financial sectors besides creating political and financial stability in the country.

1. At the time of independence in 1947, Pakistan inherited roughly 33% man power assets of the British Indian Armed Forces and scant provision  of  arms and equipment . Confronted by a hostile Eastern neighbor in India,  it was imperative for the State-to build a strong armed forces to retain its sovereign right. Since it’s inception the Armed Forces have played a decisive role in the modern history of Pakistan, notably due to three major wars against India in 1948, 1965 and 1971 and many skirmishes. Today Pakistan Armed Forces rank sixth largest in the world and comprise of Army , Navy and the Air Force, backed by paramilitary forces . The chain of command of Armed Forces is organized under the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee( JCSC) alongside the Chiefs of Staff of Army, Navy and Air Force. The post of CJCSC and the three services chiefs are tenable by a four star with tenure appointment of three years.A critical component to the armed forces’ structure is the Strategic Planning Division, which is responsible for the maintenance and safeguarding of Pakistan tactical and strategic nuclear weapons. The Armed Forces have approximately 725,000 active personnel backed by 500,000 personnel in the various paramilitary forces . The induction in the Armed Forces is on volunteer basis on merit based selection, though the Constitution of Pakistan allows for conscription in a state of war.
2. The armed forces have a highly approved rating in the society because of their profound contributions in Nation building , health and education. It has served the people at times of every crises and natural calamities, earth quakes, floods and in the conduct of census and elections. The military has played a key role in holding the state together, promoting a feeling of nationalism and providing a bastion of selfless service. Since 1960s, Pakistan has been one of the three largest contributors to UN Peace keeping operation under most trying conditions. It has taken an active part in Somalian and Bosnian conflicts and have won world over acclaim for their display of bravery and courage against heavy odds.Other foreign deployments have included Pakistani military contingent and personnel serving in African and Arab countries to name, Saudi Arabia, Jordan,Libya, Kuwait and Qatar. Pakistan military has maintained combat divisions in Arab states during Arab -Israeli Wars and in support of US lead Coalition forces in the Gulf Wars.
3. Pakistan in accordance with ‘ continental strategy’ has the largest component of its Armed Forces in the Army with its Headquarters at Rawalpindi. The motto of Pakistan Army is Imam, Taiwanese and Jihad fi It is organized into two theatre commands namely Southern and Central and has nine corps headquarters with under command divisions . Army has its integral Aviation Corps with more than 300 fixed and rotary wing aircrafts . One of the elite component of Pakistan Army is the Special Services Group ( SSG) division initially raised and trained by US forces.These troops have shown their mettle in the conduct of special operations under challenging demands.The Army Strategic Forces Command operates a wide range of missile systems in its arsenal . Pakistan Army is self sufficient in developing its small arms, ammunition and battle tanks by affiliated defense industry. It has world class training institutions from Pakistan Military Academy to all arms and services including more than a century old Command & Staff College,Quetta and National Defense University , attended by a large number of students from Muslim and friendly countries. Since 9/11, the  Army has also been actively involved in anti terrorist operations both inside Pakistan and in support of coalition forces in Afghanistan. Due to diverse geography and fighting against terrorists equipped by latest arms and technology and aided by traditional enemy of Pakistan, the army has extensive combat experience in a variety of terrain conditions.
4. Pakistan Navy is responsible to protect nation’s sea ports, marine borders approximately 1000 Kms daily supporting national security and peace keeping missions. It has almost 50,000 active duty personnel. It has its Headquarters at Islamabad and Naval Academy at Karachi . The added operational scope of Navy includes countering the threat of sea based global terrorism, drug smuggling and trafficking . The Navy’s surface fleet consists of helicopter carriers, destroyers , frigates, amphibious assault ships, patrol ships , mines counter measures and miscellaneous vessels for intelligence gathering etc. The Naval Air Arm provides fleet air defense, maritime reconnaissance and anti submarine warfare capabilities. The Navy fleet of P-3 Orion aircraft equipped with electronic intelligence ( ELINT) play a pivotal role in gathering of intelligence.Navy has its indigenous ship yard which manufactures submarines and frigates .The Navy also has a fleet of submarines with a strategic strike capability. Navy has its Marines component to undertake amphibious operations.Pakistan Navy has facilitated raising of navies of many Muslim countries and in training of their officer cadre .
5. Pakistan Air Force is the seventh largest Air Force in the world with over 945 combat fighter jets and 200 trainer transport , communication and force multiplier aircrafts.A single command structure, Air Headquarters is based at Islamabad while Air Academy is situated near Peshawar .In the historic context, Air Force has played a pivotal role in nation’s defense and national security . In its inventory PAF has US, Chinese and French aircrafts. While F-16s continue to be a backbone of the Air Force, the development and production of JF-17at Aeronautical Factory,,with Chinese collaboration has provided it the operational requirements. Air Force operates two types of airborne early warning and control systems aircraft: four Erieye equipped Saab 2000s from Sweden and six Chinese AWACS- . Pakistan Air Force has assisted in raising and training of many air forces of Muslim countries to include Libya, Jordan and its pilots fought alongside Arab nations( including Iraq)in Arab Israel wars and downed many Israeli aircrafts.
6. The world renowned Inter- Services Intelligence ( ISI) is the premier intelligence service of Pakistan that is responsible for providing, managing and coordinating military intelligence for the three services .ISI is headquartered at Islamabad and is headed by a three star Army general. It has various wings for domestic, external and special subjects each headed by a two star officer . The induction in ISI is from three services on tenure basis and permanent civilian employees. ISI has played a major role in exit of Soviet Forces from Afghanistan and in inking of US- Taliban Peace Accord of 2020. It is  rated as one of the top intelligence agencies in the world .Each service also has their intelligence branch, primarily for counter intelligence  and counter terrorism. The Media Publicity wing of Armed Forces is Inter – Services Public Relations( ISPR) which is responsible for news coverage related to Armed Forces, projection of its operations and countering hostile propaganda, both external and internal . It is co located with General Headquarters at Rawalpindi and is headed by a two star officer from Army . ISPR also publishes many professional magazines covering domestic and international issues .
7. To know more about Pakistan Army, the link to web portal is : https://www.pakistanarmy.gov.pk/

Kashmir, also termed as the, ‘Heaven on Earth’, is an 85,806 square – miles valley between the snowcapped Himalaya and Karakoram Mountain ranges. The Kashmir conflict is the oldest, unresolved international conflict and is both a territorial and ideological issue between India and Pakistan with China playing a third –party role. The dispute started,following the partition of Indian sub-continent in August 1947, after the forced annexation of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, by India. This abnegation was the violation of the British instrument of accession of India, accepted by both Muslims and Hindus which stipulated that Muslim majority areas will form part of Pakistan, while Hindu dominance states will form part of India. Pre-partition state of Kashmir had 87 percent of Muslim population. The dispute spread over more than seven decades, has resulted in three wars between nuclear neighbors India and Pakistan and several other skirmishes. India controls over 55% of the land area of the region that includes Jammu, the Kashmir Valley, most of Ladakh, The Siachen Glacier and 70 % of its population; Pakistan controls approximately 35 % of the land area that includes Azad Kashmir, Gilgit- Baltistan and part of Siachen; China controls the remaining 20 % of the land that includes Aksai Chin region and mostly uninhibited Trans Karakoram tract.

After the partition of India, and a rebellion in western Kashmir against Indian occupation, Pakistani tribes and military freed the areas of Kashmir state, which now form part of Pakistan. The resulting war between India and Pakistan ended with a UN mediated ceasefire along a line that was eventually named the Line of Control (LOC). This remains a cease fire line even today. The UN Security Council Resolution passed on 21st April 1948 and eleven more UN resolutions, last being passed in January 1957, laid down that,” Accession of Jammu and Kashmir to India or Pakistan should be decided through the democratic method of a free and impartial plebiscite”. Despite tabling and accepting these UN Resolutions, India continues to defy the provision of calling for a plebiscite denying eight million people of Kashmir their right of self-determination. Disillusioned by Indian use of force against un armed Kashmiris, including women and children, many Kashmiri resistance movements emerged seeking a merger with Pakistan. These indigenous movements for the freedom struggle against the occupation forces of India, assumed uncontrollable dimension in 1989. Despite strong Indian military presence, the struggle of Kashmiri people has continued for more than three decades now without any signs of receding. Amnesty International, UN Human Right and international human watch organizations have severely criticized the Indian government for the grave violations of human rights and killing of Kashmiris in fake encounters. However, India refuses to provide access to UN Observers or Human Rights bodies to visit Jammu & Kashmir for fact finding.

In August 2019, Indian government of extreme rightist Bharatiya Janata  Party (BJP)repelled the Articles 370 and 95 A of the Indian Constitution which gave Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IOJ&K) a special status and non-purchase of property by any outsiders. This move was enacted in accordance with the well-designed plan to recreate ground realities, change the demographic base by settling non-Muslims for Indianization of the disputed territory. After the down gradation of the constitutional status of J&K, India has introduced 200 laws to reshape the occupational state. A major change has been in the domicile law paving way for the settlement of more than two million outsider to change the population ratio to Hindus. The BJP government since coming into power in 2014 refuses to enter into a dialogue either with Pakistan or with the Kashmiri parties struggling for the separation of J&K from Indian subjugation. In the past all bilateral negotiations between India and Pakistan on the unresolved issues of Kashmir have failed to yield any meaningful results. In 2007 President Musharraf of Pakistan and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, after years of back-channel diplomacy, came near formalizing a peace agreement on the status of Kashmir but lawyers’ unrest in Pakistan and the weakening of the government, shelved the agreement. Successive US Presidents have declared Kashmir as a serious flash point between two nuclear states in South Asia and even offered a third-party mediation, but India refuses any indulgence by a third party.

India –China standoff in Ladakh in 2020 was also a consequence of Indian abrogation of Special status of J&K. Chinese capture of more than 900 square kilometers of Indian territory has placed China in a position to severe the base of Indian troops in Siachen Glacier and deny any threat to Gilgit Baltistan. It has also given a strategic advantage to Pakistan. India-China conflict has further brought the dispute to international limelight and a renewed pressure on India to resolve this long outstanding dispute. There are many similarities between the Kashmir and Palestine conflicts. Both are the oldest UN legislated resolutions, calling for the rights of self-determination of the people, occupied by neighboring states and where innocent civilians are the victims. Both India and Israel follow the policies of the use of brute force, constitutional amendments for land grabbing and illegal settlements to change demographic profiles. In both Palestine and Kashmir, now the third generation of populace is waging the freedom movement, ‘Intifada’ against the occupation forces. Together, these two conflicts remain as the unresolved issues of the Muslim Ummah.

Like other thorny files in the country, the file of free lecturers in Iraq is a dilemma produced by successive governments since 2003, as the problem emerged as a result of the patchwork solutions adopted by the official authorities, which do not address the deficiencies, but rather seek to cover it and procrastinate in finding solutions until another government comes and receives the file. This situation applies to all the thorny issues that have been pending since the first moment of the occupation of the country, which if indicated anything, indicates the lack of seriousness of all previous and current governments to advance the country in a real way. We return to our talk about the topic of free lecturers. During the past ten years, the Iraqi street witnessed many protests By the lecturers in protest against what they described as “and it is” unfairness against them and a blatant injustice to them with regard to fixing them with fixed teaching contracts and including them in the salary scale, as well as enabling them to obtain bank advances similar to the rest of the employees in the government sectors in the country and ending with raising their salaries, which are the lowest in the ladder of jobs in Country.

The year 2021 witnessed, in the first quarter of it, widespread protests by the lecturers, following the approval of the budget in Parliament, which did not include at that time any clause allowing the lecturers to be transferred from temporary contracts to permanent contracts. As a result, the Ministry of Education announced at the time the approval of the Cabinet to contract with The free lecturers and administrators working in the ministry, to the fact that the lecturers did not see the implementation of the decision on the ground. It is worth noting that there is a large segment of lecturers numbering 230 thousand lecturers whose service extends over ten years and they constitute a vital nerve in running the affairs of the Ministry of Education and advancing the educational process in country without the opportunity for permanent contract,

In the previous period, specifically in the last weeks of the year 2021, we witnessed a wave of strong protests in many governorates for the lecturers that witnessed in some areas road cuts and escalation by those concerned, which resulted in a decision by the Prime Minister to include the lecturers in the financial budget for the year 2022. The question remains: in a country that contains hundreds of thousands of aliens in military institutions, the crowd and other sectors, and salaries are paid to them in the billions, under the full view and hearing of all legal authorities and under the full auspices of the three presidencies, in which the same institutions are unable to issue a law that does justice to the lecturers who carry the highest message In existence, it is education, and perfection. It was said that if the cause appears, the hero of wonder, then there is no wonder after today from the state that the country has reached!!!!