Pakistan’s Afghan Policy: Securitized Identity and Ontological (In) Security

Abstract

Pakistan and Afghanistan are geographically contiguous and share same faith—
factors that should have brought them close to each other. However, for most of
the time relations between them have remained contentious. This paper is an
effort to observe improved engagement with Pakistan’s Afghan policy through
social constructivist’s reading of ontological (in)security. It also critically engages
with the policy’s implications, reasons for the urge of an alternative and its
possible future prospect. Policies adopted are “easy fixes” which has led to an
increased securitization of identity hence deepening uncertainty. The only way
out is desecuritization—transformation of identity towards a democratic self—
followed by promoting shared meanings between the two. Methodologically, this
study is based on a case study approach which is urged by case specificities that
can be generalized to other cases.