KARACHI – The Department of History of the University of Karachi and the Institute of Central and West Asian Studies (ICWAS) organized an international conference on ‘Central Asia in the Changing World’ at the KU’s Jinnah Auditorium of the Dr. A.Q. Khan Institute of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering on Tuesday. A renowned historian Professor Dr Syed Jaffar Ahmed said that Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan have acquired a renewed importance in regional and international politics in the last three and half decades after the liquidation of the former Soviet Union, these states, along with certain others, acquired independence, and renegotiated their affairs among themselves and with the rest of the world.
Secretary of Pakistan Institute of International Affairs Professor Dr Tanveer Khalid shared that central Asia is viewed as a credible of geopolitics where rival great powers compete for influence. In a world where a shift from uni-polarity to multi-polarity is being witnessed, there is a shifting of the balance of power both globally and within the wider region, changing the external dynamics and bringing new opportunities as well as new pressures.
Renowned economist Dr Kaiser Bengali said that when we talk about the interest of any country in a region, it means one is looking to establish economic ties. He mentioned that Pakistan and Central Asian countries always give importance to economic interests to benefit their national interests. He said that we have to come up with a better approach to enhance our economic and strategic relations in the world and we need to improve our educational standards to meet the world.
The KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi said that economic strength is vital for maintaining relations with other countries. At this critical juncture of the international political situation, hosting the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit is a major achievement for Pakistan.
He mentioned that this is a critical time to understand the new emerging threats on the political horizon internationally and we must work together to find ways to meet them. The Middle East crisis is unleashing the factors of destabilization in our region also. This crisis may potentially disrupt the global supply chain of critical commodities, like petro products. Global recession, climate change, fossil fuels, and global economic recession also pose serious threats to our region.
Dr Iraqi observed that from the Eurasian mountain down to the coastal belt of Pakistan, borders with two powerful and important players of international diplomacy– China and Russia– have tremendous potential to form an economic union like the European Union. The countries of this region have deeper friendly cultural and political relations than Western Europe’s conflicting history. Our natural and human resources and other factors of production are immense.
He mentioned that our consumer size provides us self-sufficient consumer market. The only thing that is required is how to materialize these potentials for greater and sustainable economic growth consequentially leading to the well-being of the people and will bring stability to this region.
Prof Dr Nasreen Afzal from ICWAS, Prof Dr S.M. Taha from the KU Department of History, and others also spoke on this occasion.
