Evolution of Security Paradigms in Pakistan: Assessing Contemporary Challenges to National Security

Abstract

This paper examines Pakistan's complex security landscape, including security paradigm shifts and current threats. Pakistan has complicated security issues linked to regional and global events due to its geopolitical location. This paper analyses Pakistan's complex security system to reveal its dynamics. Pakistan has faced many security concerns, from military conflicts to terrorism, extremism, and cyber-attacks. Strategic location and socio-political factors hamper security in the country. Pakistan's security situation has changed significantly in recent decades due to internal and external forces. Pakistan's security dynamics changed after 9/11 when it joined the global war on terror. Cooperation with international partners has also brought militancy, insurgency, and extremism. Pakistan also faces difficulties with its neighbors, particularly India and Afghanistan, which raises border security worries. Conflicts like Afghanistan and regional rivalry worsen Pakistan's security situation. Cyber warfare and climate change pose new security threats. Advanced technologies present opportunities and threats, requiring comprehensive digital age strategies to protect national interests. Three main research questions are answered here: It evaluates Pakistan's security paradigms, particularly in relation to geopolitical and socio-political change; It assesses current national security threats, including military, non-military, and technical; It evaluates Pakistan's security calculus and strategic reactions to regional and global events. Pakistan's security dynamics can be analyzed using realism, constructivism, and securitization theory. Integrating these viewpoints reveals Pakistan's complicated internal-external security landscape. This study could inform security policy responses. This research helps strengthen resilience and protect national interests in the face of changing regional and global dynamics by revealing Pakistan's changing security paradigms.