ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday urged a “reimagining” of South Asia’s fractured regional architecture, saying an 11-year freeze in dialogue with India was undermining prospects for long-term stability and peace in one of the world’s most volatile regions.
India and Pakistan fought a brief but intense military clash in May this year in which both nuclear-armed neighbors exchanged missiles, artillery fire and deployed fighter jets. The standoff lasted about four days before the United States brokered a ceasefire, saying the two sides had agreed to talk.
While Pakistan continued to call for a “composite dialogue” to resolve all outstanding disputes, India declined to proceed with negotiations.
Dar made the remarks while addressing the Islamabad Conclave 2025, a two-day gathering focused on security, economy, climate and connectivity in South Asia.
“The end of Cold War largely bypassed South Asia, leaving the region with few peace dividends,” Dar said while addressing the gathering. “We, the South Asians, need to think really hard. Are we doomed to remain mired in confrontation and conflict while other regions progress and prosper? The answer should be a clear no.”
He noted the region had weak conflict management and dispute resolution institutions, pointing out that “structured dialogue process between India and Pakistan remains stalled for over 11 years.”
Dar said South Asia’s fragmented political landscape, economic vulnerabilities and climate pressures had made cooperation increasingly urgent, warning that rising temperatures, extreme weather events and glacial melt were threatening water security, agriculture and livelihoods across the region.
He said the cumulative challenges of security, economic fragility and climate change were “too grave to disregard” and could not be effectively tackled without a more functional regional architecture.
He also criticized the paralysis of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) which has remained largely inactive for more than a decade, saying “artificial obstacles” must be removed to allow the organization to resume its role as a platform for economic cooperation.
Dar pointed to new trilateral initiatives, including one between Pakistan, China and Bangladesh, as examples of how smaller regional groupings could advance connectivity and collaboration where broader institutions had stalled.
Calling for South Asia to move beyond “zero-sum mindsets,” the deputy prime minister said the region needed dialogue, peaceful coexistence and economic interdependence, adding that open and inclusive regionalism remained essential for sustainable peace.
He maintained Pakistan envisioned a South Asia “where connectivity replaces divisions” and where disputes were resolved in accordance with international legitimacy.
Dar said the region would only realize its economic and political potential if all countries committed to cooperation.
He also spoke in favor of multilateralism, saying the world was witnessing growing military conflicts as states increasingly resorted to the use of force to settle disputes, showing disregard for international law and the principles of the UN Charter.
