Going Forward: USIP Goals in Pakistan

Improving Mutual Understanding between the U.S. and Pakistan

Pakistan Working Group

Pakistan’s long-term stability is just as critical for the U.S. as is its immediate role in tackling terrorism. While Pakistan has collaborated closely with the U.S. as a frontline ally since 9/11, there are tensions over conflicting interests and challenges. In order to improve mutual understanding and allow for more informed policymaking, USIP’s Pakistan Working Group provides a forum for U.S. and Pakistani officials and experts to regularly discuss important policy related issues relevant to this bilateral relationship. A variety of activities are conducted under the Working Group umbrella, including public events, internal seminars at USIP, public seminars in Pakistan, USIP publications, as well as briefings and recommendations for policymakers and Congress, with the aim of generating innovative ideas and developing synergies in U.S.-Pakistan relations.

The Growing Influence of the Pakistani Taliban and its Implications for Regional and Global Security

The growth of the Pakistani Taliban risks destabilizing Pakistani society as well as undermining peacebuilding efforts in Afghanistan. While considerable research exists on the Afghan Taliban, relatively little work has been carried out on the Pakistani Taliban. USIP’s Jennings Randolph Fellow Imtiaz Ali is researching the origins of the Pakistani Taliban, the nature of insurgency on the Pakistani side of the border, its connection with the insurgency in Afghanistan, and its links with local and global terrorist organizations such as al-Qaida. The research will provide new insight into the radicalization of the Pashtun people on the Pakistani side of the border.

Pakistan’s Negotiating Behavior

In 2010, the Institute is publishing “Pakistan’s Negotiating Behavior” by Ambassadors Teresita and Howard Schaffer. This book will identify, illustrate, and analyze characteristic features of Pakistani negotiating behavior in diplomatic encounters, with particular emphasis on the political-cultural aspects of their diplomatic interactions. Based on their own direct negotiating experience, interviews with U.S., Pakistani, and Indian officials, and a review of relevant literature, the book is an important addition to the Institute’s series on cross-cultural negotiation.

Strengthening Capacity to Mitigate Conflict

Mitigating Militancy in Pakistan

Defeating insurgent forces in Pakistan is priority of both Pakistan and the U.S. However, there is a virtual consensus that the military strategy can only go so far in addressing violence and extremism. A host of other nonmilitary policies must also be developed if the overall strategy to defeat Talibanization is to succeed. This project extends the Institute’s work on the causes and effects of Islamist militancy in Pakistan, examining issues such as financing of militancy, methods of recruitment, use of cyberspace, ideological evolution of militant groups, among other factors. The project is engaging Pakistani, regional, and western experts to contribute to an edited volume to be published by USIP.

Peacebuilding Across Borders

In partnership with Afghan and Pakistani civil society organizations, USIP is working to initiate a series of dialogues among key actors from both sides of the border to generate confidence building, trust, and a common agenda for peace and security cooperation. The dialogue group participants will receive training in conflict resolution, negotiation and mediation from USIP experts. The project will eventually organize two conferences, one in Islamabad and one in Kabul, to develop recommendations for further steps to be taken.

Developing a Network of Conflict Management Facilitators

Pakistan continues to face an active Taliban-led insurgency on its soil. As is typical of such insurgencies, the dynamics surrounding the Taliban’s operations and tactics associated with establishing control over local populations involve a mix of tools. All too often, exploitation of local conflicts is a favored measure; it leads to a culture of violence and fear. Building local capacity to prevent and manage potentially violent conflicts can reduce radicalization and militancy in troubled areas. The Institute’s Education and Training Center is conducting intermediate and advanced training with Pakistani community and civil society leaders to develop the capacity of local entities working on dialogue, conflict resolution and peacebuilding at the community level. These trained conflict facilitators will then identify and undertake dispute resolution efforts with support from USIP’s innovative micro-grant program, putting the conflict resolution tools and resources into the hands of local actors.

Read about past trainings

Pakistan’s Upcoming Generation: Hope or Despair

With 57.5 percent of Pakistan’s population of 170 million below the age of 24, the orientation of Pakistani youth will determine the country’s future trajectory. USIP’s Pakistan program seeks to focus attention on Pakistan’s youth by mapping youth perceptions and preferences for the country’s future and linking these to policy options that would put Pakistan on the right path. This exercise will examine the current state and views of the Pakistani youth, the threat of radicalization among this demographic, and the possible avenues for U.S. policy to influence their future positively.

Training Pakistani Parliamentarians and Female Leaders

At the request of the Pakistani nongovernmental organization Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency (PILDAT), the Institute’s Education and Training Center conducted a series of conflict resolution training programs in 2009 for the National and Provincial Assemblies (Punjab and Sindh), Federally Administered Northern Areas and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, as well as women and political party youth groups. In conjunction with the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), the Education and Training Center has also conducted a series of leadership training workshops since 2006 for Pakistan civil society women leaders. Particular emphasis has been placed on consensus-building, strategic thinking, and problem solving. Overall, these efforts aim to support the political process in Pakistan by empowering the next generation of Pakistan’s leaders.

Strengthening Pakistan’s Democratic Institutions

Strengthening Pakistan’s democratic institutions and enhancing the capacity for governance is a goal shared by both Pakistani and U.S. authorities. Although positive change will ultimately have to come from within, U.S. support for civilian rule in Pakistan can have a profound impact on this process. USIP is engaged in research aimed at developing a nuanced understanding of Pakistani civil-military relations and the stumbling blocks that may reverse Pakistan’s democratic progress. This project will examine the state of civil-military relations in Pakistan in the post-Musharraf era, the aspects of the current imbalance that need correction in order for civilian governance to be firmly established, and the way in which specific policies can be prioritized to minimize the possibility of a democratic rupture in the future.

The Ottawa Dialogue on Nuclear Conflict Prevention

Track II diplomacy is a means of engaging representatives from adversarial countries in dialogue on sensitive subjects to identify possible means of conflict-resolution that the participants may carry into official circles as private recommendations for constructive action. Longstanding rivals India and Pakistan became new nuclear states in 1998, and their deep disputes pose significant risks for the region. USIP is collaborating with the University of Ottawa to bring together influential Pakistani and Indian participants in a series of dialogues on courses of action serving nuclear conflict reduction and stability. Issues discussed in these dialogues include escalation control, arms control, nuclear deterrents, and civilian nuclear cooperation, among others. A preparatory meeting and the first dialogue were held in April and December 2009 respectively. Subsequent dialogues are planned for 2010.

India-Pakistan Track-II Dialogue

The U.S. has a strong interest in ensuring peaceful co-existence between India and Pakistan. Track II dialogues are crucial in reducing the potential for confrontation between these two sides, especially in regions like South Asia where Track I communications become the first casualty in times of distress. This series of dialogues will complement the Ottawa Dialogue on nuclear conflict prevention by covering a broader set of issues including terrorism, escalation control dynamics during crises, prospects of normalization across the Line of Control in Kashmir, and Indian and Pakistani roles in Afghanistan once the U.S. scales down its presence.

Promoting Peacebuilding Through Education and Civil Society Initiative

Peace Education Textbook & Teacher Training

In the past 15 years, Sunni and Shi’ite militias have caused devastating violence in Pakistan. The flourishing of extremist groups like Tehreek-e-Taliban, Lashkar-e Taiba, and Jama’at Dawa have produced a culture of sectarian violence and strained relationships within Islamic sects in Pakistan. In order to counteract sectarian violence, the Institute’s Religion and Peacemaking Program worked with both Sunni and Shi’ite religious scholars to produce an Islamic peace education textbook for religious schools in Pakistan, now published in Urdu. The textbook is directed at the high school level, and seminary teachers in the five major Islamic sects in Pakistan will use this textbook to teach a course on Islamic peacemaking and conflict resolution. In collaboration with a local partner, Al-Noor, the Religion and Peacemaking Program is also providing training to these teachers. By doing so, this initiative is developing the capacity in peacebuilding and conflict prevention for current religious teachers and the next generation of religious leaders.

Priority Grant Competition: Civil Society Capacity-Building for Dialogue and Conflict Resolution

Through its Priority Grant Competition, the Grant Program increases the breadth and depth of the Institute's work by supporting peacebuilding projects managed by nonprofit organizations including educational institutions, research institutions, and civil society organizations.

Search for USIP-funded grants on Pakistan