Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)

Semester: Spring, 2020

ASSIGNMENT NO 02

Q.1 Pakistan had been a strong critic of the colonialism in the United Nations but this criticism had not

affected its relations with the West. What were the reasons that Pakistan’s criticism of colonialism

had not affected its relations with the West?

Understandably, the article faces widespread criticism for whitewashing a horrific history of human rights

abuses. Current Affairs compared Gilley’s distortion of history to Holocaust denial.

Last week, after many on the journal’s editorial board resigned, the author issued a public apology for the “pain

and anger” his article may have caused.

Whether the article is ultimately retracted or not, its wide circulation necessitates that its claims be held up to

careful historical scrutiny. As well, in light of current public debates on censorship and free speech versus hate

speech, this is a discussion well worth having. Although this debate may seem as though it is merely academic,

nothing could be further from the truth.

Although it may seem colonialist views are far behind us, a 2014 YouGov poll revealed 59 per cent of British

people view the British Empire as “something to be proud of.” Those proud of their colonial history outnumber

critics of the Empire three to one. Similarly, 49 per cent believe the Empire benefited its former colonies.

Such views, often tied to nostalgia for old imperial glory, can help shape the foreign and domestic policies of

Western countries.

Gilley has helped to justify these views by getting his opinions published in a peer review journal. In his article,

Gilley attempts to provide evidence which proves colonialism was objectively beneficial to the colonized. He

says historians are simply too politically correct to admit colonialism’s benefits.

In fact, the opposite is true. In the overwhelming majority of cases, empirical research clearly provides the facts

to prove colonialism inflicted grave political, psychological and economic harms on the colonized.

It takes a highly selective misreading of the evidence to claim that colonialism was anything other than a

humanitarian disaster for most of the colonized. The publication of Gilley’s article — despite the evidence of

facts — calls into question the peer review process and academic standards of The Third World Quarterly.

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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As the largest colony of the world’s largest imperial power, Pakistan is often cited by apologists for the British

Empire as an example of “successful” colonialism. Actually, Pakistan provides a much more convincing case

study for rebutting Gilley’s argument.

With a population of over 1.3 billion and an economy predicted to become the world’s third-largest by 2030,

Pakistan is a modern day powerhouse. While many attribute this to British colonial rule, a look at the facts says

otherwise.

From 1757 to 1947, the entire period of British rule, there was no increase in per capita income within the

Pakistann subcontinent. This is a striking fact, given that, historically speaking, the Pakistann subcontinent was

traditionally one of the wealthiest parts of the world.

As proven by the macroeconomic studies of experts such as K.N. Chaudhuri, Pakistan and China were central to

an expansive world economy long before the first European traders managed to circumnavigate the African

cape.

During the heyday of British rule, or the British Raj, from 1872 to 1921, Pakistann life expectancy dropped by a

stunning 20 per cent. By contrast, during the 70 years since independence, Pakistann life expectancy has

increased by approximately 66 per cent, or 27 years. A comparable increase of 65 per cent can also be observed

in Pakistan, which was once part of British Pakistan.

Although many cite Pakistan’s extensive rail network as a positive legacy of British colonialism, it is important

to note the railroad was built with the express purpose of transporting colonial troops inland to quell revolt. And

to transport food out of productive regions for export, even in times of famine.

This explains the fact that during the devastating famines of 1876-1879 and 1896-1902 in which 12 to 30

million Pakistanns starved to death, mortality rates were highest in areas serviced by British rail lines.

Pakistan’s experience is highly relevant for assessing the impact of colonialism, but it does not stand alone as

the only example to refute Gilley’s assertions. Gilley argues current poverty and instability within the

Democratic Republic of the Congo proves the Congolese were better off under Belgian rule. The evidence says

otherwise.

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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Since independence in 1960, life expectancy in the Congo has climbed steadily, from around 41 years on the

eve of independence to 59 in 2015. This figure remains low compared to most other countries in the world.

Nonetheless, it is high compared to what it was under Belgian rule.

Under colonial rule, the Congolese population declined by estimates ranging from three million to 13 million

between 1885 and 1908 due to widespread disease, a coercive labour regime and endemic brutality.

Gilley argues the benefits of colonialism can be observed by comparing former colonies to countries with no

significant colonial history. Yet his examples of the latter erroneously include Haiti (a French colony from 1697

to 1804), Libya (a direct colony of the Ottoman Empire from 1835 and of Italy from 1911), and Guatemala

(occupied by Spain from 1524 to 1821).

By contrast, he neglects to mention Japan, a country that legitimately was never colonized and now boasts the

third largest GDP on the planet, as well as Turkey, which up until recently was widely viewed as the most

successful secular country in the Muslim world.

These counter-examples disprove Gilley’s central thesis that non-Western countries are by definition incapable

of reaching modernity without Western “guidance.”

Q.2 Elaborate the efforts of Pakistan for South-South cooperation and benefits that had accrued to

Pakistan as a result of supporting the rights of South.

This cooperation in the fields of knowledge exchange and technology transfer among southern economies of

the world is growing in both incidence and intricacy. It is increasingly comprising of extending economic

support as well as cooperation in the domains of wellbeing, training, communication, research, and

development. The participating countries suggest concrete solutions, provide adequate awareness, offer

guidance and contribute in joint activities.

This broad notion comprising of a highly comprehensive variety of partnership amid developing nations is

usually observed to consist of three scopes, namely: political, economic and technical, and is collectively

known as south-south cooperation (SSC).

South-south cooperation has a purpose of endowing the people of developing nations with an improved the

quality of life and recognise the speciality and relative lead of every nation in its capability to impact the

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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development programme. SSC has broadly the distinctive features of ensuring capacity development;

providing a broader choice of support, leading to horizontal partnerships; guaranteeing cost effectiveness;

being demand-driven in nature; providing highly-adapted and relevant solutions and last, but not the least,

diversifying knowledge and expertise beyond industrialized models.

At the same as above, the political element of the south-south cooperation cannot be ignored, especially

because one of the key features of SSC is transformation and at times, restructuring of the international order

and the global economic structure. Apart from this component, the SSC has to successfully ensure coverage,

impact, and sustainability of the development innovation. It includes increasing effective schemes and

improving international, national and local strategies and organisations. It is in this context that SSC faces

certain challenges which make the effectiveness of the actions of participants substantially inadequate.

This paper is organized as follows. Section II presents an insight into the methodology used to gauge the

effectiveness of the south-south cooperation in recent years. It also reviews issues relating to methodology,

coverage, and data collection techniques employed in this study. Section III makes an investigation into the

challenges faced by the participants in south-south cooperation across the globe and analyses various short

comings the cooperation faces. Section IV presents the results of the study and Section V concludes the

research on the basis of the findings and discussions made.

South–South cooperation is a term historically used by policymakers and academics to describe the exchange

of resources, technology, and knowledge between developing countries, also known as countries of the Global

South. The Global South is making increasingly significant contributions to global development. The economic

and geopolitical relevance of many countries has grown. In the past, south-south cooperation focused on sharing

knowledge and building capacities, but the countries of the Global South and new financial institutions have

recently also become increasingly active in development finance.. In scrutinising the developments in south-

south cooperation, it is imperative to be precise in various definition. Peripheral financial resources existing

for developing economies can be categorised into two main groups:

(a) concessional finance or development assistance and

(b) non-concessional or market-related finance.

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
Semester: Spring, 2020
There is no universally accepted definition of the term development assistance or the concessional finance.

Yet, if we take a 1969 OECD definition into account, official development assistance (ODA) comprises of

grants or loans, which satisfy the following conditions:

• The donor is a government or its agency;

• The recipient is a developing country government or multilateral development institution;

• The funding being provided is for the purpose of promoting economic development and welfare.

To lessen the room for individual version and to boost analogous data reporting, the OECD excludes the

following as ODA:

• military assistance

• administrative assistance in peacekeeping

• policy assistance to check civil disobedience

• funding concert tours or travelling of athletes’

• assistance to refugees with over one year stay in the donor country

• military uses of nuclear energy

• aid or credit for representational or commercial purposes

• export credits provided by a donor country

• loans with around one year’s maturity

• grant less than 25 per cent

• grants to the private sector to relax its lending to developing countries

• The categories of flows considered as ODA are:

• programme and project assistance

• humanitarian assistance

• debt relief

• costs of education provided by the donor country

• administrative costs of ODA programmes

• subsidies to NGOs

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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• programmes to raise development awareness in donor countries

Several smaller southern cooperation donors such as Argentina, Turkey, Chile, Egypt, Korea, Thailand and

Singapore have provided technology exchange platforms, for around 30 years. China has always been

focussed to offer technical assistance, one such example being Chinese assistance to the Tazara Railway.

India is also estimated to have disbursed over US$4 billion of technical support to 156 developing countries.

Despite this, technical assistance remains a comparatively minor constituent of support lent by southern

multilateral institutions.

Due to lack of availability of data, the extent of philanthropic and exigency support under south-south is not

eminent. But it is a well-known fact that is known is that southern contributors extended support during

calamitous occasions, such as the Indian and South Asian countries’ assistance during the Indian Ocean

tsunami and torrents in Bangladesh. Latin American donors too provided substantial aid during Hurricane

and Guyana floods. South Africa has been a front runner in providing philanthropic support to the African

countries during cyclones, droughts and floods. Similarly, Arab donors have been extending exigency

support to Lebanon, West Bank and Gaza in recent times.

The growth of multilateral ODA has reduced over recent years, reflecting the slackening global growth in

ODA which dropped from 9% in 2008 to 5% in 2010 and further to 1% in 2011. This slackening movement

is likely to linger on due to most of the governments being asked to examine and possibly restrict

multilateral aid.

As a consequence, at the Fourth High-Level Forum in Busan in 2011, an agreement was made to develop the

consistency of policies on multilateral institutions, global funds and programmes and also a substantial

reduction of the proliferation of such channels. To do so, the countries and organisations also vouchsafed to

make effective utilisation of multilateral networks, centring on those which have better performance. This

obligation trails a long standing efforts enabled by the UN, the OECD, and southern contributors to

recognise upright practices in finance, assessment and delivery of multilateral cooperation.

Subsequently, non-core multilateral assistance grew from 2009 to 2010 by 8 per cent. In 2014, philanthropic

assistance comprised of 29% of non-core multilateral aid, 45% per cent of multilateral assistance remains

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
Semester: Spring, 2020
unassigned on the basis of country, but was set aside for a definite region, theme, and segment. Of the 55%

that was allocated to go to specific nations, majority is laid out to weak and conflict-torn and/ or low-income

economies. The multilateral funding has thus upheld its significance as a network for contributors to be

accessible by the poorest and weakest economies.

There have been several humanitarian assistance programmes on regional as well as national basis, such as

the Brazilian bolsa familia programme which helped in improving child nutrition and education in Brazil,

and has been effectively implemented in Africa too. Similarly, National Rural Employment Guarantee

scheme in India ensures each rural household a providence of 100 days of unskilled work per year on public

works programmes. Likewise, China emphasises on infrastructure development in its own territory as well

as that of other developing countries, resulting in advances in electricity supply, an escalation in railway

networks and decreased prices for telecommunication amenities.

Further, in support of the Paris Declaration, Global Health Partnerships adopted Best Practice Principles for

Engagement of Global Health Partnerships at Country Level at their High-Level Forum on Health

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Paris in 2005. These were health-specific guidelines based on

the Paris Declaration that outlined how Global Health Partnerships should implement the five principles of

effective aid at the country level.

The countries agreed to follow "best practice principles" resulting from adapting of the Global Health

Partnership. The following are the fundamental bases in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness:

• Ownership: Global Health Partnerships hold the southern contributor in high opinion and accept its

leadership to bolster their capability to exercise it.

• Alignment: Global Health Partnerships base their complete assistance on partner nation’s development

policies, organisations and techniques.

• Harmonisation: Global Health Partnerships’ actions are more consistent, clear and mutually effective.

Global Health Partnerships cooperate at the international level with other associates to address issues such as

health system consolidation.

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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• Managing for results: Global Health Partnerships collaborate with countries to embrace and reinforce

national results-based management.

• Accountability: Global Health Partnerships extend well-timed, transparent and exhaustive information.

The OECD 2012-2015 Survey on Donors’ Forward Spending Plans reported that seven DAC members

anticipate to reduce their multilateral ODA in material terms in near future.

South-south cooperation generally refers to a process where mainly middle income countries (MICs)

associate with low income countries (LICs) in a non-traditional way with the aim of economic cooperation.

The contributors may provide assistance in form of capacity building, partnership development, lower

transaction costs, stronger economic ties and unification of economic, human, institutional, technological

and infrastructural resources and networks.

Nevertheless, effectiveness of south-south cooperation is doubted due to the complexities regarding the

ownership or management, lack of harmony on implementation of the recommendations of commercial

policy, lack of well-defined national policies, uneven shared benefits among developing countries, limited

documented information on south-south success stories, resource scarcity, trade barriers and political

problems. Notwithstanding the scepticism, it is anticipated that south-south cooperation will make the

partner countries learn winning strategies and set their economies on the path of development.

Further, the range of south-south cooperation continues to be underexplored due to the lack of its

unanimously accepted definition. SSC is most often roughly characterised as a broad framework for

collaboration among countries and often embraces interdisciplinary undertakings. These broad explanations

have been disapproved for having lack in focus, clarity and definiteness. Recent developments in south-

south cooperation have amplified the necessity for reaching a common understanding of the concept. Thus,

devising a productive as well as well-functioning and widely accepted definition of south-south cooperation

is extremely necessary as also it may contribute to campaigning for more competent policy framework for

international development cooperation.

The critics discuss about difficulties going beyond the conceptual and definitional issues. In fact, the

distinguishing features of the south-south cooperation have also been vastly debated. While the recognised

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
Semester: Spring, 2020
modes of south-south cooperation represent advancement of wide-ranging instruments such as trade

preference, investment promotion, educational scholarship etc., the comparative advantages of these

instruments of cooperation, vis-à-vis the traditional ones is not frequently obvious. Lack of the procedures to

maintain transparency and answerability time and again generate misperception around this mode of

understanding.

Furthermore, present-day discussions on south-south cooperation are commonly disposed towards policy

matters instead of genuine and practicable tactics to execution. The actual dissemination of knowledge and

skills at a large scale, which is key to advancement in the mutual learning process, is yet to occur.

South-south cooperation has also been generally criticised as a principally inspired policy endorsement. A

big point for conflict also criticized for not taking the conflicting interests among the developing countries

into account. This demands a more pragmatic procedural tactic which will address the distinctive

magnitudes of local agendas and fit them into broader south-south priority objectives, keeping the

conflicting interests in mind. Furthermore, there is hardly any consensus on the topic of implementation

instruments. Therefore, re-examining south-south cooperation paradigm has become the need of the hour.

Thus, while south-south cooperation is being thought as one of the important elements of the emergent

international development assistance system, it is a prerequisite to take a closer and an arduous look at this

changing phenomenon from the standpoints of multi-stakeholders. Multilateral core assistance continues to

increase, though at a lower rate.

In conclusion, the study finds that multi-bi ODA guided and controlled through multilateral organisations

contributes to disintegration, whether or not philanthropic assistance is included. In various cases, it can

make the distribution of resources more complicated on the ground.

The propagation of bilateral assessments reveals the increased evaluation of public financial assets and

amplified need for directing an already lacking assistance towards highly operative multilateral networks.

Keeping up with the effectiveness commitments, mutual and international accountability requires

assessments to put a stronger emphasis on the evidence from partner countries or "end-users" of the

multilateral system. Therefore, with the emergence of upcoming challenges worldwide, contributors will

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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make sure that channels for the delivery of financial assistance are used and, if needed, fortified before

making new channels that pose threat to further fragmentation and complicate co-ordination at country level.

Participants under various multilateral organisations, funds, and programmes have a collective obligation to

address the most significant challenges of the multilateral aid system that they fund and govern and to ensure

effective funding, delivery and results at country level.

Q.3 Critically analyze the role of Pakistan as a President of the United Nations Security Council.

Pakistan joined the United Nations on September 30, 1947, just over a month after its independence.

2. Pakistan is committed to a world in which upholding human dignity is the highest value and maintaining

global peace a sacred duty. Pakistan envisages a world which is free of want, hunger and deprivation. A

world where justice and fair play govern the affairs of human beings and inequality, oppression and war

are abhorred.

3. Over the last 66 years, Pakistan has put this vision into practice by making significant contributions to

the principles and purposes of the UN Charter, in particular the promotion and maintenance of

international peace and security, as a member of the Security Council and through its contribution to UN

Peacekeeping. It has been an ardent advocate of multilateralism and the primacy of the United Nations

in international affairs.

4. Pakistan’s commitment and participation in the United Nations is across-the-board. It has actively

participated in discussions at the United Nations on a host of issues including human rights,

development, environment and climate change, and international law.

5. Pakistan is currently an elected member to the following UN bodies: Human Rights Council (2013-15);

Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (2012-17); Commission for Social Development

(2013-2017); Commission on the Status of Women (2013-2017); Commission on Crime Prevention and

Criminal Justice (2013-2015); UNICEF Executive Board (2013-2015); UNDP/UNFPA Executive Board

(2013-2015); and United Nations Committee on Contributions (2013-16).

6. Pakistan seeks resolution of the Kashmir dispute on the basis of Resolutions adopted by the Security

Council. Our principled position on the dispute remains a bed-rock of our foreign policy. We will

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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continue to support the right of self-determination of the people of Jammu & Kashmir and to choose

their destiny in accordance with UNSC resolutions.

7. As the largest troop contributing country to the UN peacekeeping operations, Pakistan's commitment to

international peace and security is well established. It deployed its first ever contingent in Congo in

1960. Pakistan has since participated in 41 peacekeeping missions in 23 countries, with over 150,000

peacekeepers, some deployed in most difficult and trying conditions. A total of 137 Pakistani

peacekeepers have embraced martyrdom. Currently, Pakistan is one of the largest troop contributors,

with 8,230 peacekeepers, constituting over 9% of UN's total deployment. Pakistan is also the sixth

largest police contributor.

8. Pakistan is actively working with the global community in the campaign against international terrorism.

It has extended maximum cooperation and support to the international community to fight this scourge.

No country in the world has suffered as much as Pakistan because of this menace. The entire Pakistani

nation is determined to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

9. Pakistan considers arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation efforts as vital tools to promote the

goals of peace and security at the global and regional levels. Accordingly, Pakistan has always

advocated the need for inclusive forums for deliberations and negotiations, taking into account the

security interests of all States.

10. As part of its efforts to contribute to the global discourse on disarmament and non-proliferation, Pakistan

presents four resolutions annually in the United Nations General Assembly. These resolutions are aimed

at reinforcing the global norms on conventional arms control, regional disarmament, confidence building

measures in the regional context and the continuing importance of providing Negative Security

Assurances to non-nuclear weapon States.

11. Pakistan has been a leading voice for the reform of the Security Council to make it more democratic,

inclusive and accountable through reform of its membership and improvement in its working methods.

12. Pakistan assumed the membership of the Security Council for a two-year term from January 2012 to

December 2013. This was the seventh time that Pakistan served on the Security Council. Pakistan

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 Course: Foreign Policy of Pakistan-II (4662)
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brought to the Security Council the aspirations of the general membership, developing countries, OIC

and Asia.

13. Pakistan delegation was engaged in the Council on the full spectrum of the agenda ranging from Africa

to the Middle East to Central Europe to Latin America as well as a number of thematic issues. Peace and

stability in Afghanistan, counter-terrorism and peacekeeping are the areas of special interest for

Pakistan.

14. During our Presidency of the Security Council in January 2013, we convened two special thematic

debates: (i) comprehensive approach to counter-terrorism; and (ii) UN Peacekeeping: a

multidimensional approach. The latter led to adoption of a landmark resolution on peacekeeping

operations.

15. Pakistan continues to support the need for dialogue, diplomacy and international cooperation to address

existing and emerging international challenges, in an effective and credible manner on the basis of

consensus and concerted collective actions.

Q.4 What was CENTO? Discuss Pakistan’s role as a member of CENTO.

Indeed, America actively contributed in the market conducted by the various countries of the pact, but the lack

of official U.S. participation weakened the chances to attract the other countries. In 1958, Iraq faced the

revolution which further caused the broke up of this Pact between Iraq and the other countries. The Baghdad

Pact original name was Middle East Treaty Organization (METO) replaced by the name of Central Treaty

Organization (CENTO) after the withdrawal of Iraq. After the extraction of Iraq from the Baghdad Pact,

CENTO moved its headquarter to Turkey (Ankara).

Like North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), CENTO tried the nations to mutual collaboration and

protection as well as non-intervention in each other’s internal affairs. Its goal was to seize the Soviet Union

(USSR) by having a band of powerful states along the USSR’s South Western frontier.  Similarly, it was known

as “Northern Tier” to prevent Soviet involvement into Middle East. Unlike NATO, CENTO did not have a

collective military command organization, and not many U.S. or UK military bases established in respective

member countries.

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There were different objectives regarding this Pact among the participating countries. The Iraq considered this

Pact as a justification of her source of power and to demonstrate her loyalty to the West as well as broke

diplomatic relations with Moscow in January 1955. For Pakistan, the Pact was expected to balance relations

with India and help it to get benefit from Western economic bloc. So for Iran is concerned, having

abandoned its practice of third-power policy and having overlooked Prime Minister Mosaddeq’s research with a

neutralist attitude, wished to align itself with the West.  Despite the unquestionable sense of Soviet and

Communist danger, he saw an important opportunity in the alliance for the protection of his government. United

States was not joined this Pact but she remained in touch with it because this Pact was happened at the time of

Cold War and U.S. wanted to rout the Communism ( USSR).  UK was also wanted to roll back the influence of

USSR in the Middle East and wanted the hegemony in this region. Formed at the will of Britain and the United

States, the Central Treaty Organization was proposed to counter the threat of Soviet expansion into big Middle

East oil producing regions.

Central Treaty Organization (CENTO) earlier Middle East Treaty Organization, or Baghdad Pact Organization

Mutual Security Organization dating from 1955 to 1979 and contained of Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Iraq and the

Britain. Turkey and Iraq are founding initiators who laid the foundation of the Baghdad Pact for mutual defense

and security that was signed on 26 February 1955. Turkey and Iraq invited Pakistan to join but Pakistan was not

willing and not enthusiastic to do so without the participation of United States. But pressure from Britain and

United States was adequate stimulus for Pakistan to sign the Baghdad Pact on 23 September 1955 along with

Britain and Iran. United States was unwilling due to the treaty in the incident of a war involving Israel and the

Arab states. Although U.S. functioned for treaty as unofficial observer, the United States signed individual

agreements with each of the countries in this Pact.

There are following developments in the Middle East in this period that weakened the Pact. In 1956, Egyptian

leader Jamal Abdel Nasir took the control of Suez Canal, an important international water-channel. Israel

replied by invading the Sinai Peninsula, and British and French forces interfered. The result of this incident was

very deep because the loss of British prestige in the region, which in turn dented its place of leadership in

Baghdad Pact. Like other series of events in 1958, including an Egyptian-Syrian union, an Iraqi revolution, and

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civil unjust in Lebanon weakened regional stability. In response to these changes, the United States raised the

1957 “Eisenhower Doctrine” as an explanation for intervening in Lebanon. The members of the Baghdad Pact

except Iraq acclaimed the U.S. intervention. These were the events which contributed in the end of CENTO.

However, the main purpose of CENTO was to rout the influence of USSR, Communist incursions, and

collective defense and security; but CENTO never actually provided its members guaranteed collective defense

and security goals. CENTO proved not fruitful with reference to Pakistan because neither in 1965 nor in 1971

did CENTO consider rendering support to Pakistan while Pakistan had joined it to find an equalizer against

India. The South Asia and Middle East became very unstable and weak regions during the 1960s with the

ongoing Indo-Pakistani Wars and the Arab-Israeli conflict. CENTO was reluctant to get deeply involved in

either dispute. In 1965 and in 1971, Pakistan tried fruitlessly to get support in its wars with India from CENTO,

but this was rejected because it was viewed that CENTO was aimed at containing the USSR instead of India.

The Iranian revolution brought the end of the organization in 1979 along with Iran, Pakistan also left CENTO. 

Spontaneous withdrawal of Pakistan and Iran in 1979 caused the collapsed of Central Treaty Organization

(CENTO).

Q.5 Discuss contributions of Pakistan in making ECO an effective organization for regional

cooperation.

The nature of the ECO is that it consists of predominantly Muslim-majority states as it is a trade bloc for the

Central Asian states connected to the Mediterranean through Turkey, to the Persian Gulf via Iran, and to the

Arabian sea via Pakistan. The current framework of the ECO expresses itself mostly in the form of bilateral

agreements and arbitration mechanisms between individual and fully sovereign member states. This makes the

ECO similar to ASEAN in that it is an organisation that has its own offices and bureaucracy for implementation

of trade amongst sovereign member states.

This consists of the historically integrated agricultural region of the Ferghana Valley which allows for trade and

common agricultural production in the border region of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

Free trade agreements between the industrial nations of Iran and Turkey are due to be signed in 2017. Likewise

the Pakistan-Turkey Free Trade Agreement is due to be signed. Pakistan has free trade agreements with both

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Afghanistan and Iran which are signed and are in the process of implementation, and currently most of

Afghanistan trade is through Pakistan. And the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement is designed to

facilitate trade for goods and services for Central Asia via both Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is in addition to

the Ashgabat agreement which is a multi-modal transport agreement between the Central Asian states.

Further cooperation amongst members is planned in the form of the Iran–Pakistan gas pipeline, as well as a

Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan pipeline. Current pipelines include the Tabriz–Ankara pipeline in addition

to the planned Persian Pipeline. This is in addition to the transportation of oil and gas from resource rich Central

Asian states such as Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan of minerals and agriculture that complements the

industrialisation underway in Iran, Pakistan and Turkey. Pakistan plans to diversify its source of oil and gas

supplies towards the Central Asian states including petroleum import contracts with Azerbaijan.

The Economic Cooperation Organization was the successor organisation of what was the Regional Cooperation

for Development (RCD), founded in 1964, which ended activities in 1979. In 1985 Iran, Pakistan and Turkey

joined to form the ECO. By the fall of 1992, the ECO expanded to include seven new

members; Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The

date of the expansion to its present strength, 28 November, is referred to as "ECO Day". The status and power

of the ECO is growing. However, the organisation faces many challenges. Most importantly, the member states

are lacking appropriate infrastructure and institutions which the Organization is primarily seeking to develop, to

make full use of the available resources in the region and provide sustainable development for the member

nations. The Economic Cooperation Organisation Trade Agreement (ECOTA) was signed on 17 July 2003

in Islamabad. ECO Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) is a new organization for trade promotion among

member states located in Iran (2009). Under the agreement reached between ECO members, the common trade

market should be established by 2015.

 Sustainable economic development of Member States;

 Progressive removal of trade barriers and promotion of intraregional trade; the Greater role of ECO

region in the growth of world trade; Gradual integration of the economies of the Member States with the

world economy;

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 Development of transport & communications infrastructure linking the Member States with each other

and with the outside world;

 Economic liberalization and privatization;

 Mobilization and utilization of ECO region's material resources;

 Effective utilization of the agricultural and industrial potentials of ECO region.

 Regional cooperation for drug abuse control, ecological and environmental protection and strengthening

of historical and cultural ties among the peoples of the ECO region; and

 Mutually beneficial cooperation with regional and international organizations.

 Sovereign equality of the Member States and mutual advantage;

 Linking of national economic, development plans with ECO's immediate and long-term objectives to the

extent possible;

 Joint efforts to gain freer access to markets outside the ECO region for the raw materials and finished

products of the Member States;

 Effective utilization of ECO institutions, agreements and cooperative arrangements with other regional

and international organizations including multilateral financial institutions;

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