Economic Impact of Nuclearization of South Asia.

Byline: Muhammad Irfan Abbasi

South Asia is the most populous region of the world and almost one-fifth of the world population resides in this region. Due to its geostrategic importance, it has always been the focus of world powers in order to gain access to energy-rich Central Asia and the untapped reserves of Afghanistan. Pakistan and India are the two leading countries of this region and have had unresolved issues since the independence of the Subcontinent. Kashmir is the main unresolved dispute between India and Pakistan despite being on United Nations Security Council agenda for over half-century. Economic Impact of Nuclearization on South Asia The security, as well as the economic situation in the region, largely depends on the relations between these countries. Driven by the ambitious agenda of regional hegemony, India is the largest importer of weapons which results in a perpetual arms race in the region. Smaller nations of South Asia always feel insecure due to the mass import of modern weapons by India and try to counterbalance depending on their resources. Pakistan amidst having an unresolved Kashmir issue has had serious and valid concerns about arms build-up by India as both countries have already fought three wars on one or the other issue.

This unending hostility between the two countries always became a hindrance to the progress in the region and the social well-being of the public in both countries. The largest chunk of the budget in both Pakistan and India goes to the defense sector. As a result, they have little to spend on improving governance, education, and development. Hence the majority of the public in the region, especially in India is living below the poverty line. Taking the example of Europe, the European nations have resolved their conflicts, and therefore have a lot to spend on public welfare programs. While South Asian countries have always needed the help of international institutions and leading nations for public welfare. Ironically, a large population in India is still deprived of basic facilities. Likewise, the situation is not any different in some far-flung areas of Pakistan too but that is meager as compared to India. Both India and Pakistan conducted successful nuclear tests in 1998 and joined the nuclear state's club, but when compared with other nuclear states in the economic sphere, they are lagging far behind. After attaining the nuclear status by...