On 21 January 2026, the Government of Pakistan formally announced its membership in the Board of Peace, an international body tasked with facilitating the Gaza Peace Plan.
Pakistan is one of several Muslim-majority countries – alongside Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar – participating in the body.
The decision to join the Board of Peace has drawn domestic criticism and debate, but its merits or flaws notwithstanding, this move once again validates Quwa’s core thesis – i.e., Pakistan’s pivot to focusing on Middle Eastern security affairs.
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Pakistan’s participation in the Board of Peace and the Gaza Peace Plan is now perhaps the strongest sign of this shift. This is not to suggest that Pakistan would play a leading role in any of these Middle Eastern security issues. Whether Pakistan assumes an actual leadership role in any of these issues is beside the point; the point is that the Middle East should be a priority for Pakistan’s national security leaders.
However, this shift will undoubtedly trigger the historical tension – i.e., balancing the push to look West with the pull of addressing the Indian threat.
Will Pakistan Gain Anything?
Quwa had theorized that Pakistan could ask for support in building its conventional force deterrence (to deter India from instigating a conflict) in return for ‘looking West.’ However, it is unclear to what extent the U.S. is interested in facilitating this exchange…
Granted, the Middle East could emerge as a source of defence exports that, if sold at healthy margins, could help Pakistan fund big-ticket procurement. However, aside from a spate of Reuters reports from a narrow pool of reporters, there is limited evidence of these sales.
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