Pakistan’s Geopolitical Priorities and the “Russia Factor”: History and Modernity.
https://doi.org/10.31249/kgt/2025.04.03
Abstract
The article evaluates the State of Pakistan’s geopolitical priorities based on comparative analysis methods. The depth of the degree of diversification of relations with the country’s principal allies, the United States and China, is compared. It shows how the bilateral relations of the Islamic Republic with the USA and China have developed after 1947. It is noted that the relations of the “notional alliance” with the United States shaped the foreign policy course of Pakistan from the moment of independence to the events of September 11[th] , 2001. The author traces the formation of “all-weather alliance” relations between Pakistan and China and highlights their main causes. The article shows how and why China is turning into a pivotal ally of Pakistan. The main trends in the development of Soviet-Pakistani and Russian-Pakistani relations are traced. The restrictive factors hindering the development of bilateral relations are demostrated. The conclusion is drawn about the need for the guiding influence of the state on the expansion and deepening of the relations between Moscow and Islamabad.
Keywords
About the Author
A. G. VolodinRussian Federation
Andrey G. Volodin, Chief Researcher, Center for Global South Research
Nakhimovsky Avenue, 51/21, Moscow, 117418
References
1. Belokrenitsky V.Y. (2024). Main milestones and stages in development of Russia-Pakistan relations. Vestnik Instituta Vostokovedenija RAN. No. 1, pp. 175–186 (in Russian). DOI: 10.31696/2618-7302-2024-1-175-186.
2. Belokrenitsky V.Y., Moskalenko V.N., Shaumyan T.L. (2003). South Asia in International Politics. Moscow: Mezhdunarodniye Otnosheniya, 368 pp. (in Russian).
3. Chatterjee Miller M. (2022). How China and Pakistan Forged Close Ties. Council on Foreign Relations. October 3. Available at: https://www.cfr.org/article/how-china-and-pakistan-forged-close-ties, accessed 07.04.2025.
4. Daulet Singh Z. (2020). Powershift. India-China Relations in a Multipolar World. New Delhi: Macmillan, 335 pp.
5. Haas R.N. (1990). USA and South Asia. Strategic Digest. Vol. 20, N 4 (April), pp. 2178–2182.
6. Kamenev S.N. (2006). Economic cooperation between Russia and Pakistan. Russian Foreign Economic Journal. No. 7, pp. 20–28 (in Russian).
7. Khan M.T.F. (2019). Pakistan’s Foreign Policy towards Russia. Strategic Studies. Vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 89–104. DOI: 10.53532/ss.039.03.00107.
8. Komarov E.N. (1998). In Russia and India. From the Memories and Observations of an Indologist. Moscow: Vostochnaya literatura, 192 pp. (in Russian).
9. Mearsheimer J.J. (2001). The Future of American Pacifier. Foreign Affairs. Vol. 80, no. 5 (September/October), pp. 46–61.
10. Munir T. (2025). Relationship Between Afghanistan and Pakistan: Allies or Adversaries? The Geopolitics. March 5. Available at: https://thegeopolitics.com/relation-ship-between-afghanistan-and-pakistan-al-lies-or-adversaries/, accessed 27.08.2025.
11. Nayar B.R. (2005). The Geopolitics of Globalization. The Consequences for Development. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 301 pp.
12. Raza S.T. (2021). United States and Pakistan in the 21st Century. Geostrategy and Geopolitics in South Asia. London, New York: Routledge, 271 pp.
13. Rossi R. (2025). Geopolitics of China-Pakistan’s Relations. Special Eurasia. June 10, available at: https://www.special-eurasia.com/2025/06/10/geopolitics-chi-na-pakistan/, accessed 04.08.2025.
14. Simoniya N.A. (2011). Catch-up Development in the Era of Globalization. In: Petrov A.M. (ed.). “Catch-up Development” and What It Is Catching Up With. Moscow: Institute of Oriental Studies, pp. 9–27 (in Russian).
15. Singh P. (2024). Pakistan-Russia Relations Mark Shifting Sands in South Asia. The Diplomat. December 12. Available at: https://thediplomat.com/2024/12/pakistan-russia-relations-mark-shifting-sands-in-south-asia/, accessed 12.07.2025. Volodin A. (2012). Russia, India and Pakistan-China Cooperation. Fund of
16. Strategic Culture. July 6 (in Russian). Available at: https://www.fondsk.ru/news/2012/07/06/rossia-india-i-pakista-no-kitajskoe-sotrudnichestvo-i.html, accessed 20.08.2025.
17. Wolmar Ch. (2017). Railways & The Raj. How the Age of Steam Transformed India. London: Atlantic Books, 363 pp.
18. Zamaraeva N.A. (2020). China – Pakistan Relations: Bilateral and Regional Challenges. In: China in World and Regional Politics. History and Modernity. Yearbook. Issue 25. Moscow: Institute of Far Eastern Studies, pp. 226–242 (in Russian). DOI: 10.24411/2618-6888-2020-10014.
Review
For citations:
Volodin A.G. Pakistan’s Geopolitical Priorities and the “Russia Factor”: History and Modernity. Outlines of global transformations: politics, economics, law. 2025;18(4):37-64. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31249/kgt/2025.04.03
JATS XML




























