Artificial Intelligence and Pakistan’s National Security
PRIO Paper
Relations between India and Pakistan have been fraught with tension since their partition from British India in 1947. The two nations have engaged in several wars, frequent territorial skirmishes, and numerous terrorist incidents. The border between them remains one of the most heavily militarized in the world.
With a population one-sixth the size of India’s and a significantly smaller army, Pakistan’s national security strategy is predominantly India-centric and reactive. To bridge the growing gap in military strength between itself and India, Pakistan aims to acquire advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems, with China being its main supplier. China’s importance to Islamabad has increased, especially after the recent decline in Pakistan’s relations with the USA and the simultaneous strengthening of the Washington DC–New Delhi quasi-alliance. Pakistan’s goal is to obtain all the AI-embedded tools that India currently possesses or is in the process of acquiring.