Advancing Stability Through Developmental Research

Independent insights and policy recommendations for sustainable development

Postmortem of Four-Day India – Pakistan War: Lessons for India

Asif Haroon Raja India's Miscalculations and Weakly Planned Pahalgam False Flag Operation India’s strategic miscalculation stemmed from a flawed assessment of Pakistan’s internal situation. Convinced that political polarisation, economic challenges…

Deleterious Role of Detractors in Pakistan

The critics in Pakistan are selling a narrative, that the largest and most popular party of the…

Historical Background – Unravelling of Democratic Culture in India

Asif Haroon Raja Partition and Divergent Beginnings (1947–1950s) The article argues that although India developed a strong…

Bangladesh An Autocratic State

In July 2024, student protests in Dhaka over government job quotas sparked nationwide unrest, with violence, prison…

  Policy PaperSardari System in Balochistan – The Root Cause of the Balochistan Conundrum

Part Two Asif Haroon Raja The Baloch Sardars Balochistan constitutes about 44 percent of Pakistan's landmass, yet…

Forgotten 1971 & Kashmir Tragedies

Kashmir, the Partition's unfinished agenda, was neglected without a long-term policy, allowing India to strengthen its hold,…

Pakistan-UAE Relations in a Multipolar World: Balancing Between China, the US, and the Gulf

On 26th December 2025, the President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al…

PRESS RELEASE

CDS Hosted Roundtable Discussion on “Pakistan-Oman Bilateral Ties: A Cornerstone…

CDS & COMEX Partner to Showcase Pakistan’s IT at COMEX 2025

CDS and COMEX have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)…

Khuzdar’s Strategic Location: A Catalyst for Regional Trade and Development

The Centre for Development and Stability (CDS), organized a seminar…

Editor's Pick

Kashmir: A Test of State Authority and National Cohesion -Implications for Pakistan, Azad Kashmir, and the Kashmir Cause

Asif Haroon Raja The Tactics of the Banned JAAC The banned JAAC kills innocent people and then criticizes the military,…

11 Min Read

The Third Gulf War

Asif Haroon Raja The war in the Persian Gulf began with U.S. strikes on 28 February, justified on what increasingly…

Bangladesh at a Strategic Inflection Point (2026)

Election Outcome, Incoming Power Structure, and Regional Recalibration By: Nuzhat Nazar and Maimona Saleem Bangladesh’s 2026 Election: A Political Reset,…

By Fajar
10 Min Read

Two Fronts, One Strategy? Pakistan’s Growing Encirclement Concern

(By: Nuzhat Nazar) The recent escalation along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border is being described in routine terms such as infiltration, retaliation…

6 Min Read
War Seems Imminent

Negotiations in Doha and Istanbul were a farce, essentially designed to buy…

6 Min Read
U.S. – Iran Agreement & Middle East Geopolitics

U.S.-Iran Agreement & Middle East Geopolitics The formal signing of a landmark…

6 Min Read

For you

Postmortem of Four-Day India – Pakistan War: Lessons for India

Asif Haroon Raja India's Miscalculations and Weakly Planned Pahalgam False Flag Operation India’s strategic miscalculation stemmed from a flawed assessment…

Imran Khan: From Cricketing Hero to Political Confrontation

Asif Haroon Raja Political History of Imran Khan The cricketer Imran Khan earned worldwide fame after leading Pakistan to victory…

21 Min Read

The Shanghai Spirit at 25: A New Model for Multilateral Cooperation

Zhao Yunfei Andijan’s train station sits on the eastern edge of Uzbekistan’s rail network and is gearing up for a…

4 Min Read

A Day of Suspense, Speculation, Political Manoeuvring and Uncertainties

Asif Haroon Raja Circulating Rumours and Suspense Yesterday was a day full of suspense, speculation and political intrigue. All kinds…

14 Min Read

The Makkah Pact and the Erosion of America’s Gulf Hegemony

  The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement is a potentially historic shift in Gulf security: from an order dominated by American…

9 Min Read

India–Pakistan Antagonism in Historical Perspective

Part Three Asif Haroon Raja Emerging Fault Lines in India–US Relations Pakistan's nuclear programme, its growing strategic relationship with China…

13 Min Read

India–Pakistan Antagonism in Historical Perspective

Part Two Asif Haroon Raja Following Partition in 1947, India and Pakistan emerged as the two principal successor states to…

India–Pakistan Antagonism in Historical Perspective

Part One Asif Haroon Raja India's Expansionist Trajectory and Regional Hegemonic Ambitions Since the end of British rule in 1947,…

Pakistan’s Emerging Role as a Hinge Power in a Fragmenting Regional Order

The geopolitical landscape across the Middle East and South Asia is undergoing a structural shift. As traditional security frameworks fray…

6 Min Read

The Mecca Defence Pact: A New Security Architecture or a Crisis-Driven Coalition?

The signing of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement on August 7, 2026, marks an unprecedented realignment in the security landscape…

5 Min Read

The Strait of Hormuz Crisis: What It Means for Pakistan’s Economic and Strategic Security

  Exploring how the August 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis impacts Pakistan's energy imports, inflation, and foreign exchange, driving the…

5 Min Read

August 15, 2026

Beyond Border Security: Rethinking Pakistan's Afghanistan Policy in 2026 An evaluation of deteriorating Pakistan-Afghanistan relations, analyzing the TTP factor, Durand…

6 Min Read

August 15, 2026

Gaza and the Crisis of International Order: When Rules Fail to Protect Civilians A study of the ongoing Gaza crisis…

7 Min Read

China Culture Centre, DoAM Hold Cake-Cutting Ceremony to Mark Pakistan’s 79th Independence Day

ISLAMABAD: The Department of Archaeology and Museums (DoAM), Islamabad, in collaboration with the China Culture Centre, organized a special cake-cutting…

By CDS
2 Min Read

Remarks by Ambassador Jiang Zaidong at the Seminar on Xi Jinping Thought on Party Building

Your Excellency Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani, Chairman Senate of Pakistan, Your Excellency First Class Inspector Mr. Liu Daxiu, Professor Mr.…

15 Min Read