Abstrict

Pakistan and the United States have had on-and-off relations since the former's inception. Post 9/11, shifts were observed in the foreign policy of the United States towards Pakistan, followed by a strategic shift in Pakistan’s approach towards its ally in Afghanistan. This study aims to analyze the impacts of the post-9/11 Pak-U.S. alliance on Pakistan's socioeconomic security by explaining the rise of terrorism as a consequence of the alliance and how it affected the social and economic security of the state. The theoretical framework focuses on John Mearsheimer’s theory of offensive realism. The study employs qualitative research methodology and focuses on secondary data. It argues that, as a consequence of the post-9/11 Pak-US alliance, the socioeconomic security of Pakistan was compromised. This study opines that a pragmatic foreign policy combined with a comprehensive national security approach is of paramount importance to Pakistan in the future to survive and progress.

Keywords

Alliance, Economy, Foreign Policy, Socioeconomic security, Terrorism, United States and Pakistan 

Introduction

Security is one of the primary objectives of states in the International Arena, Pakistan and the United States have had on-and-off relations since the inception of the former. The governments of both the states have cooperated whenever there was a convergence of interests. During the Cold War, both parties aligned against the communist USSR, and post 9/11 Pakistani government decided to facilitate the United States military endeavors in Afghanistan. After the 9/11 attacks, the United States embarked on a campaign to fight against any actor that it considered to be a threat to its national security and was involved in different military campaigns in different regions of the globe, particularly in the Middle East and Afghanistan. During this era, they sought allies in regions located near their areas of operation and Pakistan was one of the states located in a significantly strategic location for them. Pakistan was entangled in a difficult situation at that time because of the sanctions imposed on it by the United States because of the display of Nuclear weapons as a reaction to the nuclear detonations carried out by India in 1998.

Post 9/11, both the governments of Pakistan and the United States came close to one another and Pakistan was considered a major ally of the United States in the region, as a result of this decision taken by the Pakistani government at that time, the country had to face some dire consequences and the socio-economic security of the state was compromised. Terrorism emerged in the country, the trembling economic situation worsened as a result of violent attacks. The state's economy suffered tremendous losses. Foreign direct investment was affected and the economic activities within the country were affected in a negative manner. Moreover, the social security of Pakistan was compromised as well, because of the alliance, terrorists initiated their violent campaigns and as a result, social security was affected in a significant manner. This research aims to examine the impacts of the post-9/11 alliance on the socio-economic security of Pakistan.

Background of the Study

In International Arena, strategies are adopted by states to interact with other states in order to pursue their national interests. States cannot have International Relations in isolation, they have to interact with the rest of the world, their interaction is for achieving some goals which are based on their national interests. Pakistan after its independence was in a weak position, there were many issues that the newly born country was facing, and was in need of serious assistance from the international community. Pakistan opted for an alliance with the United States for the purpose of economic and military assistance and developed a cordial approach towards one of the most powerful states of that time. Pakistan attempted to form relations with the US for military, economic, and political interests while the US on the other hand accepted the friendly approach of the newly born state only when they saw Pakistan as an ally in the region and wanted to form an alliance with them for the containment of communism. “In their first engagement during the early years of the Cold War, Pakistan had important symbolic value as an ally both as the tenth largest Muslim country with a salient geopolitical location and as a link in the U.S. chain of alliances from Europe and the Middle East to Asia in its Cold War containment policy” (Hussain, 2021).

Both Pakistan and the United States had to operate on a mutual battlefield and that was Afghanistan. The relationship during the Cold War was extremely close but after the defeat of the Soviets, things started to change and the US left Pakistan alone. There has been divergence between these two on various occasions but got close again after 9/11.

Post 9/11 Pakistan was in a difficult situation, it was facing sanctions and the economic situation of the state was weak. United States on the other hand needed someone in the region close to Afghanistan in order to facilitate their military campaign in Afghanistan post 9/11. The decision-makers of both parties got closer once again and the government of Pakistan became the frontline ally of the United States in their military campaign in Afghanistan. Pakistan was under 4 different types of sanctions prior to the September 11 attacks, the sanction imposed by Bush under the Pressler amendment that suspended economic and military assistance to Pakistan, sanctions after the showcase of Nuclear weapons in retaliation to Indian nuclear detonations, the third related to democracy under democracy law and the fourth one on Pakistan's ministry of defense and SUPARCO on receiving missile technology from China (Jabeen, Mazhar, & Goraya, 2010).

As a result of this alliance, Pakistan's national security was compromised and it had to face the dire consequences of the decisions. The alliance formed post 9/11 has had negative effects on the socio-economic security of Pakistan. Because of the alliance formed post 9/11, a plethora of issues have emerged and different terrorist organizations began employing violent means to destabilize the peace and security of the state. The rise of terrorism has affected the overall growth of the state and thousands of casualties have taken place, the socioeconomic security of Pakistan suffered tremendously, the economic growth has been halted and the social fabric of society has been disturbed.

Research Question

o What were the impacts of Pakistan's 9/11 alliance with the United States on the Socioeconomic security of Pakistan?

Research Objectives

o To examine the effects of the post-9/11 alliance on the economic security of Pakistan.

o To Analyze challenges that emerged to the social security of Pakistan as a consequence of forging an alliance with the United States.

Theoretical Framework

The theoretical framework of this research focuses on Offensive Realism, a theory in International relations that in itself falls under the school of Realism which focuses on the competitive and conflictual nature of International relations, the theory of offensive realism was developed by political scientist John Mearsheimer. Offensive realism talks about the power-seeking behavior of states in an anarchic world and argues that states are driven by a desire to achieve regional or global hegemony, for these purposes, states are concerned with relative gains and at times can employ coercive means to achieve their goals. This theory posits that there is an anarchic structure of the world and power struggles take place between actors in the international arena, it talks about International anarchy, power struggles, and lack of trust between the international actors and the efforts made by states to secure themselves and achieve their goals. Because of the anarchic structure of international relations states take measures for their survival and pursue power. States in order to secure their interests go for military buildup and in the international arena states can never be certain about the intentions of the other actors. States want to become relatively powerful as compared to their adversary (Mershiemer, 2001)

This research explains the nexus or alliance between the US and Pakistan post 9/11 and examines the effects of this strategic alliance on the socio-economic security of Pakistan.

Research Methodology

The methodology of this research is purely Qualitative, Secondary data has been collected from articles, books, websites, and journals. Additionally, data related to Pakistan's socio-economic security, and economic indicators are also collected and explained to understand the impact of post 9/11 alliance on the Socioeconomic security of Pakistan”.

Post 9/11 Policy Realignments by Pakistan and the United States

A stable economy is an important factor for the progress of a state, Pakistan since its inception has been a state that has looked out for economic assistance. Before 9/11, the economic conditions of Pakistan were degrading and it was facing numerous sanctions by the United States because of multiple reasons. Pakistan was under 4 different types of sanctions prior to the September 11 attacks, the sanction imposed by Bush under the Pressler amendment that suspended economic and military assistance to Pakistan, sanctions after the showcase of Nuclear weapons in retaliation to Indian nuclear detonations, the third related to democracy under democracy law and the fourth one on Pakistan's ministry of defense and SUPARCO on receiving missile technology from China (Jabeen, Mazhar & Goraya, 2010).

After siding with the United States in their military campaign in Afghanistan, the United States began supporting Pakistan. The US in return for Pakistan's support for their war in Afghanistan provided economic funds and cancelled some of the debts. After Musharraf's decision to assist the Americans, Washington quickly canceled 1 billion USD in Pakistan's debts to the United States and also used their influence in International financial institutions to support Pakistan in other ways. In June 2003, Bush met with Musharraf in Camp David and pledged a 5-year aid package of 3 billion USD for military and civilian sectors. By the end of 2004, the U.S provided Pakistan with around about 4 billion USD (Markey, 2013).

The damage done to Pakistan's economy during America's 20-year war in Afghanistan has had dire consequences for Pakistan and to this day the state suffers. Pakistani officials claim that the country has lost around 150 billion USD in the 20-year-long military campaign led by the United States. In an opinion piece published by the Washington Post, the then-prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan claimed that economic losses are more than 150 billion USD, in addition to the 70,000 lives (ARAB NEWS, 2021).

Rise of Terrorism as a Result of Alliance

The government of Pakistan's decision to join the U.S.-led war has been one of the main causes behind the rise of terrorism in Pakistan and has disturbed the fabric of peace in the country. Pakistan supported U.S. and NATO by allowing access to sea, air, and land routes as well as logistics and intelligence support. Pakistan's support to the U.S. resulted in the rise of anti-Pakistani sentiments and various groups inside Pakistan turned against the state and conducted various terrorist acts (Haider, Heredero, Ahmad & Dastgeer, 2015).

After the decision to take part in the U.S led to war in Afghanistan, a shift in the security policy of the state was observed that contributed to the emergence of various challenges to Pakistan's national security and the rise of antagonistic elements such as TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan) in the tribal areas of Pakistan. TTP was an umbrella term used for various militant organizations in the tribal regions of Pakistan”.

Baitullah Mehsud of South Waziristan was chosen as the first commander in chief of TTP, initially 27 militant organizations joined TTP and decided to strengthen their foothold in tribal areas of Pakistan (FATA). Later on with the passage of time, TTP endeavored to extend their area of operations from FATA to major cities of Pakistan including cities in Punjab by establishing relations with other terrorist organizations in Punjab (Khan, 2016).

After 9/11, Pakistan witnessed a tremendous hike in terrorist attacks particularly after 2007, when TTP was born as an umbrella organization to coordinate and facilitate attacks. Attacks on hospitals, crowded bazaars, masjids, hotels, diplomatic missions, railways buses, etc were observed and until 2015 the casualties were reported to be around 60 thousand including military, police, and civilians. Moreover, the destruction of public and private assets was estimated to be around 118 billion USD (Sattar, 2020).

 Organizations like TTP have disturbed the peace of Pakistan and have been a major challenge to the national security of the state. This anti-Pakistani outfit has been a centripetal force for other militant organizations and the state of Pakistan has given a great amount of attention in order to counter this threat (Yusuf, 2014).

Reduction in Foreign Direct Investment

Conflicts can have detrimental effects on the economy of a state, sometimes these conflicts can be the cause of activities such as terrorism that can have negative effects on the economy and social well-being of the people. These activities are pre-planned, and strategies are devised to create an environment of fear. This in turn affects the economic conditions of the state by affecting the foreign investment and economic activities (Shahzad, Zakaria, Rehman, Ahmad & Fida, 2015).

One of the main factors that have affected the economic security of Pakistan is the decrease in Foreign direct investment (FDI). The inflow of FDI requires an investment-friendly environment in the host country. In Pakistan terrorism increased post 9/11, both domestic and foreign factors were involved in contributing to the terrorist activities in Pakistan and it affected the macroeconomic indicator especially the economic growth and Foreign direct investment” (Shahzad, Zakaria, Rehman, Ahmad & Fida, 2015).

Terrorism affects the FDI in a very negative manner because of the hostile environment the investors do not invest in the states that are suffering from conflicts, because they fear they may not get benefits from their investment and may not achieve their expected targets. It discourages FDI by increasing the cost of doing business (Zakaria, Jun & Ahmad, 2019).

After 9/11, there was fear in the Muslim world. Countries, particularly those where conflicts were taking place were considered not fit for investment. Pakistan was amongst those countries that were labelled as a dangerous country and not fit for business, as a result foreign investment was reduced. The U.S. business community did not treat Pakistan well and was not ready to invest in the country. Additionally, travel advisors prevented investors from visiting Pakistan, Pakistan became a no-go country and this resulted in a lack of investment pouring in from foreign sources which affected the economy of Pakistan in a negative manner. Moreover, the industrial sector was affected badly, manufacturing performance also declined and small industries suffered as well (Khalid, 2020).

Effects on Domestic Investment

Domestic investment is also important for a state to achieve its economic goals and improve its economic situation. Terrorism affects this investment as well because of the internal unstable security conditions of the regions that suffer terrorism it becomes difficult for the investors to spend money in such a hostile environment. Public investment is also damaged because of the damage done to government projects such as roads, dams, canals, bridges, highways hospitals, etc due to terrorist activities. Additionally, terrorism also damages investment in vulnerable sectors of the economy such as tourism and affects investment in such businesses. Moreover, because of terrorist activities, resources are shifted towards countering them and this can crowd out public and private investment as well (Zakaria, Jun & Ahmad, 2019).

The economic impacts of terrorism can be direct and indirect. There can be direct costs to property and productivity, and the living standards of the people are badly affected because of such violence. Terrorism can also contribute to the inflation in a state, because of terrorist threats alternative routes may be opted for trade which can be much more expensive, and such an approach can push the inflation even higher. Moreover, terrorism can also affect the volume of trade (Malik & Zaman, 2013).

Economic Losses

In an article published in Express Tribune, the former finance minister of Pakistan DR Abdul Hafeez Shaiekh argued that because of the war the investors are hesitating in investing in the country and this is leading to the decrease in FDI. In 2011-12 the FDI stood at 666 million USD nearly half of what it was in 2010-11. The war has caused direct and indirect economic costs to Pakistan. Direct costs because of the increase in terrorist attacks that have resulted in the destruction of infrastructure and the shutdown of economic activities, while the indirect costs of war have included a sharp decline in Foreign Direct investment FDI that is hurting the economy of the state” (Shahid, 2014).

Due to the US-led conflict, Pakistan's economy has suffered a staggering loss of $252 billion, more than eight times the amount of aid that Washington has provided to Islamabad. In his book "Growth and Inequality-Agenda for Reforms," which was unveiled in front of three cabinet members in March 2019, including the then Finance Minister Asad Umar, economist Dr. Hafiz Pasha estimated the cost at $252 billion. The price is double what the Ministry of Finance had disclosed in the Economic Survey of Pakistan. The $252 billion loss is equivalent to 93% of the nation's economy” (Tribune, 2019).

KP and FATA Tribal areas were one of those regions that had to face severe consequences because of the war. These areas faced various indirect costs of war including unemployment, which was accompanied by a substantial increase in poverty levels. Moreover, the increase in militancy in these areas and the displacement of the local population have had effects on the socioeconomic fabric of the conflict-affected regions, the effects were not only limited to these regions but adjacent areas were also affected, the standard of living decreased and the cost of living increased. Furthermore, KP and GB were some of the most important tourist destinations in the country but because of such a violent environment, tourism in these areas was also affected (Shahid, 2014).

The disruption of regular economic and trading activity led to greater transaction expenses, such as considerable delays in fulfilling international export orders. Pakistani goods thus rapidly lost market share to other products. Economic development was unable to accelerate as planned, and a large portion of economic resources and men were allocated for repair and restructuring programs. Because of terrorism, Pakistan's international trade was highly disrupted and the state was unable to reach its targeted growth figures. The law and order situation in Pakistan became worse and as a result, foreign investors were not ready to invest, in order to counter various terrorist groups, Pakistan allocated a huge share of its resources towards countering them and facilitated the movement of military and law enforcement individuals within the state” (Jamshed & Islam, 2021).

Figure 1

Economic Losses



Damage to Tourism Sector

Countries or regions that depend on tourism can suffer because of terrorist activities and the tourism economy can decline because of an insecure environment. People do not choose regions with security issues as their holiday destinations. KP and Gilgit Baltistan are popular tourism destinations in Pakistan and because of the instability in KP tourism was affected a lot (Ali, 2010).

“In Pakistan, the tourism industry deteriorated after the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan and because of the internal instability and security concerns, tourism declined significantly. The occupancy rate of hotels in conflict-hit areas such as Swat declined drastically. In 2007-8 it reduced from 60% to 40%, As a destination for travelling Pakistan ranked 113 out of 130 in 2009. This ranking was the result of internal instability and hostile terrorist actions. Because of the closure of various tourism industries, many people in areas that were dependent on the tourism economy lost their jobs. According to the Pakistan Association for Tourism's statistical report, before 9/11, 1 million tourists on average used to visit Pakistan annually but after the occurrence of terrorism, it dropped to 10,000. In recent years the tourism sector in Pakistan has been contributing more to the GDP. In 2016, it contributed 2.7% to the country's GDP. In 2017, the tourism sector has contributed even more as compared to 2016. After the improvement in the security conditions of the state, the number of foreign tourists in Pakistan has increased and it was recorded at around 1.75 million in 2016” (Jamshed, & Islam, 2021).

Extremist Elements

Pakistan faced a plethora of internal issues because of its post 9/11 policy shift and as a result the mindset of the population was also affected. The tribal areas of the state were mostly affected by Pakistan's decision to side with the United States. Because of military operations, these areas were affected severely, the infrastructure was affected and the people had to leave their homes and migrate to other parts of the country. These people suffered a lot and terrorist organizations started their recruitment campaigns by working on the psychology of the young generation. Feelings of hate and terrorist violence rose because of such strategies of terrorist organizations. The frequent terrorist attacks raised mistrust of people against the government and institutions. Human rights were badly affected and terrorist organizations like TTP targeted the young generations of the state and as a result, many youngsters got involved in terrorism. A number of energetic youth was lost. They got wasted because of involvement in terrorism and this contributed to the worsening of law and order situation in the country. Suicide attacks and bomb blasts became a routine and many educational institutions, check posts, public rallies, hotels, restaurants, and masjids were targeted” (Jamshed, & Islam, 2021).

According to UNDP United Nations Development Program report in 2018, Pakistan has a large population of youth according to the National Human Development Report published by UNDP, more than 64% of the country's population is below 30 years of age while 29 5 is between 15-29 years of age. This massive number of youth can have positive and negative effects on the national security of the state. They can either become useful assets or they can turn out to be liabilities (Ahmad, 2018).

It is of paramount importance for the state to protect these young people from such terrorist organizations because such a high number of youth can be of paramount importance in the development and growth of the state if managed properly. On the other hand, if the same youth gets into the trap of terrorism, then they may turn out to be a serious threat to the national security of the state.

Loss of Human Lives

Pakistan faced various challenges to its internal stability as a result of Pakistan's decision to join the U.S in its war campaign in Afghanistan, Pakistan has paid a heavy cost for its involvement in U.S led war, in terms of human losses Pakistan from 2002-2013 lost more than 52,000 lives including civilians, personnel from law enforcement agencies and military. Moreover, the economic damage endured by Pakistan has had negative consequences as well (Abbasi, 2013).

Post 9/11, Pakistan has suffered a large number of casualties and each year has witnessed a growing number of casualties, after 2006 the casualties mounted up in a significant manner, in 2006 the casualties were 993, and in the following year it rose up to 2120 including civilians and security personnel. In 2009 alone 500 bombings, 86 of which were suicide attacks have taken place with the majority of them taking place in tribal areas and KP (CRSS, 2010).

The decision made by General Musharraf to side with the U.S has had a tremendous impact on Pakistani lives, the casualties were not only the result of strikes from the terrorist organizations but U.S forces and particularly the drone strikes have contributed to the killing of civilians in Pakistan particularly in the tribal areas of the state. Salala tragedy was one of the cases in which the United States military was responsible for the loss of Pakistani soldiers, moreover allowing drone strikes inside the Pakistani region, especially in the tribal belt resulted in the loss of unarmed civilians and the numbers were significant. The military losses were equivalent to two full-fledged military brigades, moreover, military installations were also targeted, in addition to these attacks on APS that is considered to be carried out by TTP are one of the worst in the history of the state, and thousands of civilians have been displaced and around 40-50 thousand civilians have lost their lives (Yamin, 2015).

United States drone strikes in Pakistan have killed more than 2000 people including an unknown number of civilians, this approach of the United States has resulted in strong condemnation by the people of Pakistan but despite the concerns and efforts United States has failed to fulfill their promise of transparency and have not compensated for the civilian damage that resulted by their drone campaigns (Foundations, 2014).

Issue of Internally Displaced People

Pakistan after launching military campaigns in the tribal areas faced some serious retaliatory responses from terrorist organizations. Initially, in response violent activities spread and extremism spread throughout the tribal regions, an increase in suicide attacks was observed that had dire effects on the peace of the country and thousands of people lost their lives moreover the psychology of people was affected and thousands were displaced, this resulted in the problem of Internally displaced people IDPs (Katwani & Abbasi, 2018).

Three million people were displaced at the height of the crisis in 2009, but the camps that the government set up for them were in appalling condition. While many immigrants temporarily found safety with relatives, the majority had to rent housing. Years of uncertainty as the FATA conflict carried on depleted their mental and financial resources. According to several surveys, 20–30% have completely given up, sold their property, and relocated permanently to urban areas in the neighboring province of Khyber–Pakhtunkhwa, or to Islamabad, the capital, and Karachi, the port city (Hussain, 2016).

In 2008 an official committee reported that during the military operations in south Waziristan extensive collateral damage took place, the committee reported that over 4000 houses had been destroyed in different regions of South Waziristan, in addition to government buildings including schools, health care, telecommunication facilities and other infrastructure have also been damaged (DAWN, 2008).

The military operations prompted people to evacuate the war areas in KP and FATA. Between 2.7 and 3.5 million people, According to data from the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies. The biggest number in Pakistani history is thought to be this one. Many left South Waziristan for urban areas to seek safety from the deteriorating security situation in order to protect their family. The FATA region's South Waziristan Agency had the largest migration. A little over 428,000 people left their homes. In the Malakand division alone, 383,190 people were evicted from their houses, along with 400,000 in the Orakzai Agency and more than 100,000 in the Khyber Agency” (Batool & Virk, 2022).

Issue of Internally Displaced People

Pakistan after launching military campaigns in the tribal areas faced some serious retaliatory responses from terrorist organizations. Initially, in response violent activities spread and extremism spread throughout the tribal regions, an increase in suicide attacks was observed that had dire effects on the peace of the country and thousands of people lost their lives moreover the psychology of people was affected and thousands were displaced, this resulted in the problem of Internally displaced people IDPs (Katwani & Abbasi, 2018).

Three million people were displaced at the height of the crisis in 2009, but the camps that the government set up for them were in appalling condition. While many immigrants temporarily found safety with relatives, the majority had to rent housing. Years of uncertainty as the FATA conflict carried on depleted their mental and financial resources. According to several surveys, 20–30% have completely given up, sold their property, and relocated permanently to urban areas in the neighboring province of Khyber–Pakhtunkhwa, or to Islamabad, the capital, and Karachi, the port city (Hussain, 2016).

In 2008 an official committee reported that during the military operations in south Waziristan extensive collateral damage took place, the committee reported that over 4000 houses had been destroyed in different regions of South Waziristan, in addition to government buildings including schools, health care, telecommunication facilities and other infrastructure have also been damaged (DAWN, 2008).

The military operations prompted people to evacuate the war areas in KP and FATA. Between 2.7 and 3.5 million people, According to data from the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies. The biggest number in Pakistani history is thought to be this one. Many left South Waziristan for urban areas to seek safety from the deteriorating security situation in order to protect their family. The FATA region's South Waziristan Agency had the largest migration. A little over 428,000 people left their homes. In the Malakand division alone, 383,190 people were evicted from their houses, along with 400,000 in the Orakzai Agency and more than 100,000 in the Khyber Agency” (Batool & Virk, 2022).

Figure 2

IDPs in Pakistan because of conflicts:



According to the Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies, between 2.7 million and 3.5 million people were relocated from KPK and FATA as a result of military operations; this might be regarded as the largest displacement in Pakistani history. 428,000 people from South Waziristan were uprooted, 400,000 from the Orakzai agency had to leave their homes, 383,190 from the Malakand agency were uprooted, and 382,950 had returned to their homes. 84,000 to 100,000 from the Khyber agency were uprooted, and 750,000 from the Bajuar and Muhmand agency had to leave their homes. People experienced bodily and psychological damage as a result of militancy. Their lives were devastated by fear. These IDPs were forced to shut down their companies and leave their businesses. Now, the majority of them are jobless” (Khalid, 2020).

Loss to the Education Sector

Education is of paramount importance for a state to prosper and to compete with other states in the International arena. Unfortunately, in Pakistan Educational institutions have been one of the most frequent targets of terrorist organizations, as a result of such violent endeavors of terrorists, academic activities have been disrupted again and again. Attacks have been carried out against schools and universities, particularly in KP province that have resulted in the loss of numerous valuable lives. Between 2009-18, terrorists carried out 717 violent attacks against educational institutions across Pakistan's 49 districts, most of these attacks have taken place in KP and tribal areas of the state. “These attacks have damaged the infrastructure of numerous educational institutions and have deterred parents from sending their children to schools. Additionally, these attacks have also resulted in the killing of 227 people and injured 447 others. About 200 schools were attacked in 2007 and 2008, and 82 of these educational institutions were targeted in Swat. According to a CRSS report during the terror campaign in Swat 190 government schools and 368 private schools were destroyed and damaged by terrorists” (Hussain, 2019). 

Figure 3

Attacks On Educational Institutions In Pakistan 2009-18



Above Chart shows the number of terrorist attacks on educational institutions throughout the country, it can be seen that the majority of the educational institutions targeted were located in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of the country.

Among the attacks on educational institutions, the Army Public School APS Peshawar massacre was the deadliest and the one that not only shocked the entire country but the news circulated internationally. On 16 December 2014, a group of terrorists attacked the APS Peshawar and killed 144 schoolchildren. Moreover, multiple faculty members were also targeted and died on the spot (Kalim & Janjua, 2018).

TTP claimed to have attacked the Army public school in Peshawar resulting in the killing of around 147 innocent children including teachers, After this violent attack the stakeholders of the state decided to bring a shift in Pakistan's approach towards terrorism and endeavors for National action plan 2014 was witnessed (Naveed, 2019).

Recommendations

The findings of this research point out the 

undesirable impacts on the socio-economic security of Pakistan and posits that the socio-economic security of Pakistan was compromised as a result of an alliance between the United States and Pakistan after 9/11”.

It is of paramount importance for Pakistan to make reforms to its foreign policy formulation mechanisms in order to devise pragmatic strategies in the future. An inclusive approach needs to be adopted which focuses on input from different departments of the state before making a specific strategy. Moreover, Economic recovery measures are needed to address the challenges to the trembling economy in order to move in the direction of sustainable development.

Additionally, the social issues that emerged after the alliance with the United States including the issue of extremism, IDPs, damage to the education sector and extremist elements, etc need to be addressed as soon as possible by devising practical solutions and making policies to prevent damage to these social sectors in future.

Furthermore, it is highly recommended to neutralize the terrorist organizations operating inside Pakistan. These organizations need to be eliminated as soon as possible because terrorism is a cancer that can further deteriorate the socioeconomic security of the state. Rational military strategies should be employed, expertise and support from other countries can be an important asset in this fight against terrorism. Pakistan can also work with other states in order to eradicate the threats to its socio-economic security. It is recommended to utilize various tools of foreign policy including diplomatic avenues to form partnerships with other states and gain their support by identifying the areas of mutual interests in order to eradicate the threats to the socio-economic security.

Another important area that needs a comprehensive and dedicated investigation because of the recent development that took place is the role of Pakistan in the region after the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan in 2021, what can be the challenges and opportunities for Pakistan after the U.S. withdrawal and how Pakistan can secure its national interest in the region.

Lastly, this study recommends that for a state like Pakistan, having abundant potential, it is of paramount importance to have a dynamic and pragmatic foreign policy combined with a comprehensive national security approach in order to survive and progress in the international arena and to address the challenges to its national security.

Conclusion

This study aimed to analyze the impacts of the post 9/11 Pak-US alliance on the socio-economic security of Pakistan, the impacts were devastating. The results indicate that the decisions made by the governments of Pakistan and the United States have had undesirable repercussions to the socio-economic of Pakistan. The theoretical framework focused on John Mearsheimer's theory of offensive realism talks about the power-seeking behavior of states in an anarchic world and argues that states are driven by a desire to achieve regional or global hegemony, for these purposes states are concerned with relative gains and at times can employ coercive means to achieve their goals. The methodology used was purely qualitative, secondary data has been collected, examined, and explained.

The study found that Pakistan's foreign policy lacked some important features and the state was heavily dependent on the assistance from US, as a result, the decision-making capability of Pakistan was disturbed and it was not able to have a more competitive foreign policy in the international arena. The foreign policy of Pakistan has not been according to the national interests on some occasions and short-term goals were kept instead of making grand strategy for long-term goals. Pakistan has not been able to utilize its potential in an efficient manner and got involved in the US military campaign in Afghanistan post 9/11, which resulted in dire consequences to the socio-economic security of the state.

The findings from this thesis indicate the socioeconomic security of Pakistan was compromised. The economic balance was affected and the country had to face losses worth hundreds of billions. FDI was affected drastically which contributed to halting the economic progress of the state. 

The research argued that social security was affected in a drastic manner and that contributed to the disturbance of internal peace and stability. Radical and extreme means were employed and the psychology of people was affected particularly the youth, furthermore tourism, trade and education were also among those sectors that faced difficulties. 

This research makes a contribution to the current existing literature in the field of International relations, security studies, and foreign policy analysis by exploring the different dimensions of the complex relationship between the United States and Pakistan and how the socioeconomic security of Pakistan was affected as a result of the post 9/11 alliance between these two actors.”

The study concludes that a dynamic and pragmatic approach is needed by the foreign policymakers of Pakistan when making Strategies in order to interact with the world. The economic structure of the state needs to be improved and the decision-making abilities need to be pragmatic in order to survive and progress in the international arena.

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