Pakistan: News & Insights

A soldier carries ballot boxes ahead of Pakistan's 2018 general election in Peshawar. The country is scheduled to go to the polls again on Feb. 8, 2024.

Politics

Pakistan security fears and Imran Khan factor fuel talk of election delay

Race off to slow start but government insists polls will go ahead on Feb. 8

12 December 2023

Lawyers in front of India's Supreme Court in New Delhi on Dec. 11.

Politics

India's top court upholds end of Kashmir's special status, orders polls

Decision buoys Modi government ahead of 2024 general election

11 December 2023

Pakistani and Afghan flags flutter at the Chaman Border Crossing as a truck carries refugees back to Afghanistan amid Pakistan's crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

The Big Story

Pakistan makes Afghan refugees pay the price for economic crisis

Threatened with default, government tries reform whilst looking for scapegoats

8 December 2023

A stretch of northern Pakistan's Karakoram Highway. A deadly attack has renewed security concerns along the road to China.

Terrorism

Attack on Pakistan highway to China shakes key Belt and Road link

Bus shooting raises concerns over outlook for all-weather upgrade

6 December 2023

Trucks loaded with goods are seen at the Pakistani-Afghan Torkham border crossing as refugees head back to Afghanistan on Oct. 30.

Editor-in-Chief’s Picks

Letter from Nikkei Asia's editor: Pakistan on the edge

Shin Nakayama shares his weekly reflections and recommendations

1 December 2023

Pakistan's then Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks in Islamabad in June 2021. He was removed from office in April 2022.

Politics

Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan steps aside to keep his party's hopes alive

PTI picks 'stopgap' chairman as election winds favor nemesis Nawaz Sharif

30 November 2023

Nawaz Sharif, center, waves to supporters in Lahore on Oct. 21 after returning from self-imposed exile.

Opinion

Pakistan's election will not be about change this time

Military is showing it wants Nawaz Sharif back as prime minister for fourth term

30 November 2023

Women wave flags as they gather in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza during a rally in Karachi on Oct. 20.

Politics

Pakistani Islamist parties tap electorate anger over Israel-Hamas war

Polls, boycott campaign highlight public outrage amid tepid government response

26 November 2023

New Delhi residents use clothes and books to protect their faces from the scorching sun on a hot June day in India. 2023 could be the hottest year on record.

The Big Story

Asia's climate-driven health crisis raises alarm ahead of COP28

Summit's first health ministerial follows record summer spike in heatstroke and dengue cases

22 November 2023

Pakistani officials inspect a car belonging to a Chinese national that was fired upon in a July 2021 attack in Karachi. The authorities are now insisting that Chinese personnel working in the country must use bulletproof vehicles.

Belt and Road

Pakistan expands security for Chinese after Beijing's pressure

Officials insist on bulletproof cars as separatist merger raises fears of attacks

20 November 2023

Afghan Taliban fighters stand guard as Afghan refugees line up to register in a camp near the Torkham border crossing with Pakistan on Nov. 4.

Afghanistan turmoil

Pakistan points Afghan Taliban to militant hideouts, urges action

Islamabad says it shared 'evidence' of Pakistani Taliban presence Kabul denies

17 November 2023

Pakistan's then-Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari attends a news conference in Russia in January, when his Pakistan People's Party belonged to a ruling coalition led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.

Politics

Pakistan People's Party flirts with Imran Khan camp before elections

Shifting allegiances could shake up race as military banks on Nawaz Sharif's PML-N

15 November 2023

A Pakistani soldier stands guard during Independence Day celebrations in Karachi on Aug. 14. A recent report found that at least 386 security personnel had been killed in the first nine months of the year, an eight-year high.

Politics

Pakistani military adds enigmatic militant group to list of worries

Attack on air base hints at evolving threat ahead of national elections

12 November 2023

Pakistan's Port Qasim coal power plant is run by a joint venture with a Chinese partner. A significant portion -- $28.4 billion -- of the South Asian country's loans from China are in the energy sector.

Belt and Road

China loaned Pakistan $21bn more than reported, study finds

South Asian country has world's largest Chinese-funded energy portfolio

9 November 2023

Supporters of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif welcome him back from self-imposed exile in Lahore on Oct. 21, ahead of the 2024 general election.

Politics

With date set, Pakistan enters election season fraught with doubts

Feb. 8 polls raise concerns over security, fate of still-popular Imran Khan's PTI

6 November 2023

Pakistan ordered possibly 1.7 million undocumented Afghans out of the country by Nov. 1, creating chaotic scenes at Torkham and other border crossings. (Norwegian Refugee Council via Reuters)

Afghanistan turmoil

Taliban warns Pakistan about Afghan expulsions: Reap what you sow

Islamabad's repatriation policy fuels anger over lost businesses and assets

3 November 2023

Afghan citizens gather to cross into Afghanistan on Nov. 1, after Pakistan gave a last warning to undocumented immigrants to leave.

Afghanistan turmoil

Pakistan-Afghanistan border overwhelmed as Afghans face expulsion

Islamabad seeks to enforce vow to deport undocumented migrants

2 November 2023

Afghan women living in Pakistan wait to get registered at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Peshawar in September 2021.

International relations

Pakistan gives last warning to undocumented Afghans and others to leave

State has 'complete data' to begin deportations after Nov. 1 deadline

26 October 2023

Belt and Road

Pakistan puts 'blind trust' in China as Belt and Road enters new phase

Countries agree to start major railway project but obstacles remain

23 October 2023

Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, center, and his daughter Maryam Nawaz greet supporters in Lahore on Oct. 21, after he returned from four years in self-imposed exile.

Politics

Pakistan's Nawaz Sharif vows relief, not revenge, in return from exile

Army believed to tacitly back ex-PM's homecoming ahead of elections

22 October 2023

Pakistan's Torkham border crossing with Afghanistan: Islamabad has ordered undocumented migrants in the country to leave or face arrest and deportation. (Photo by Jamaima Afridi)

Afghanistan turmoil

Pakistan's deportation clock ticks on paperless Afghan refugees

Taliban, activists slam order for migrants to leave by November or face arrest

18 October 2023

Sports

Pakistan's arcade heroes take esports world by storm

Upstart nation gives gaming world's powers run for their money

15 October 2023

Pakistan International Airlines has racked up billions of dollars in losses, making it a burden the government is keen to unload.

Economy

Pakistan's new push to privatize national airline faces headwinds

Government aims to fast-track sale but experts say bankruptcy may be only option

14 October 2023

Children at an Afghan refugee camp in Islamabad in 2020: Pakistan said it will unilaterally deport up to 1.7 million unregistered Afghans.

Opinion

Without respect, Pakistan will not get anywhere with Afghanistan

For Kabul to restrain the TPP, Islamabad must treat regime as its equal

12 October 2023

Pakistan's cautious statements on the Israel-Hamas war have attracted attention, given the country's typically strident pro-Palestinian stance. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by AP and Reuters)

Middle East crisis

Pakistan adopts careful tone on Israel, experts read between lines

Economic crisis and long-term foreign policy goals seen keeping Islamabad cautious

12 October 2023