Ananta Insights | Makkah Joint Defence Agreement | August 2026
The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement was signed among Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan on August 7, less than a year after Saudi Arabia and Pakistan entered into a similar agreement. The Backdrop The agreement is said to have been under consideration for almost a year. Israel’s aggressive display of its military power since October 2023, […]
Ananta Insights | Civil Unrest in Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) | July 2026
The chickens of Pakistan’s hypocrisy and opportunistic policy on Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) are coming home to roost. POJK has increasingly been the scene of serious civil unrest against Pakistan’s misgovernance, exploitation and violation of human rights. Ruled as a fiefdom Pakistan has constituted the areas of J&K illegally occupied by it into two units: […]
Ananta Insights | A Year of Operation Sindoor by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | May 2026
Operation Sindoor, launched by India in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and subsequently paused but not called off, has completed a year. It is, therefore, time to appraise its impact on the ground, the lessons learnt by India and the current state of play. Impact on the ground and lessons learnt Pakistan […]
Ananta Insights | Pakistan’s Geopolitical Recovery: An Appraisal by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | December 2025
A Troubled State A dysfunctional, troubled and troublesome state all through its existence, Pakistan went into over three decades of geopolitical decline after the end of the US-led Afghan Jihad against the Soviet Union. Having defeated the Soviets, the West turned its back on Pakistan and external assistance dried up. Infested with religious extremism as a result […]
Ananta Insights | US-Pakistan Diplomatic Reset – An Appraisal by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | October 2025
A popular remark in Pakistan, epitomizing the predominance of the Army, Islam and the US in the Pakistani polity, describes it as a state run by ‘Allah, America and Army’. Pakistan-US relations have seen their ups and downs. Lacking strategic congruence, the two countries have gone through phases of collaboration in a transactional relationship, interspersed […]
Ananta Insights | Strategic Implications of China-Pakistan Axis by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | July 2025
Speaking recently, Lt. General Rahul R Singh, Deputy Chief of Army Staff, said that China provided “all possible support” to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. It treated the military conflict as a “live lab” to test its weapon systems; hoping to kill the adversary with a “borrowed knife” and “use the neighbour to cause pain”. He […]
Ananta Insights | Operation Sindoor: the New Normal by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | May 2025
A terror attack near Pahalgam on April 22, claimed by the Pak-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) offshoot The Resistance Front (TRF), resulted in the loss of lives of 26 tourists. In an unsuccessful attempt to disturb communal harmony in India, the terrorists killed their victims after ascertaining their religion. The immediate response of the Government of India […]
Ananta Insights | Pakistan’s Baloch Conundrum by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | March 2025
H I G H L I G H T S Five insurgencies Factors underlying the Baloch unrest Some other complicating factors Baloch insurgency takes an ominous turn Likelihood of Balochistan’s Secession Constituting 44% landmass of Pakistan, Balochistan has only around 6% of its population. It existed in three parts at the time of the partition […]
Ananta Insights | Af-Pak Digest by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | January 2025
I Overview Pakistan Political Developments Army Economy Terrorism and Violence Pakistan-China Pakistan-USA Pakistan-Bangladesh Afghanistan Human Rights Situation Afghanistan discussed at the UN Afghanistan-Pakistan Afghanistan-India Afghanistan-USA Afghanistan-Russia Afghanistan-Saudi Arabia Afghanistan-Iran II Developments in Pakistan Political Situation Two long marches on Islamabad organised by PTI last year having failed to get any relief for him and his […]
Ananta Insights | Af-Pak Digest by Ambassador Sharat Sabharwal | December 2024
I Overview Pakistan Political Developments Economy Terrorism Kurram Violence PoK Unrest Pakistan-China Pakistan-Russia Pakistan-Iran Pakistan-Bangladesh Pakistan-Belarus Afghanistan Akhundzada further tightens his grip Economy Terrorism Afghanistan-Pakistan Afghanistan-India Afghanistan-China Afghanistan-Russia Afghanistan-UAE Report on Commencement of Work on TAPI in Afghanistan II Developments in Pakistan Political Developments Driven to a corner by the army-led […]