The increased militant activities by the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban outfit pose a severe challenge to the country in 2023. But the dire economic situation means there is almost no money for counter-terrorism actions.
A suicide bombing in Islamabad on Friday killed one police official and injured six people in the latest assault claimed by the Pakistani Taliban.
The banned Islamist group, which ended the truce with Islamabad last month, has launched a series of attacks in the country.
Pakistani authorities have urged the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Kabul last year, to use their influence on Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) to make peace with Islamabad. Still, several rounds of negotiations have not yielded a positive result.
Pakistan faces multi-pronged security challenges, not only from the TTP but also from the new rulers in Kabul, as shelling from Afghanistan along its border with Pakistan has killed several civilians.
The security situation will likely deteriorate next year, but Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government has neither the popular mandate to tackle it nor the economic means to overcome the challenge.
Pakistan has been grappling with a faltering economy for decades. Still, the COVID pandemic and the worsening global economic slowdown have made it almost impossible to tackle the challenges facing the Muslim-majority South Asian country. Massive floods, which many experts dubbed a “climate catastrophe,” also put additional pressure on the fragile economy.
In October, the inflation rate reached an all-time high of 14.9%. The Pakistani rupee is at its lowest against the US dollar, and petroleum prices are out of reach for common citizens.
According to Pakistan’s central bank, the country’s foreign exchange reserves have declined to $6.7 billion ($6.3 billion), the lowest figure in the past four years.
“Pakistan will continue to face a number of challenges in the coming year; a deepening economic crisis amid a rising political instability,”
Pakistan has been politically unstable since former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s ouster from power in a no-confidence vote in April. Khan has launched a nationwide movement to overthrow the coalition government headed by PM Sharif. The military, which has ruled the country collectively for more than three decades and still calls the shots behind the scenes, feels vulnerable in the face of scathing criticism of interference in politics.
- Top Stories
- December 24, 2022
- 11:01 am
Will 2023 be any Better for Pakistan after a Turbulent 2022?
ڈیسک
215
215
Latest Videos