Shahryar Khan Niazi is a strategist with over two decades of experience in international relations. His career includes time at the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), where he won the UK’s Secretary of State award.
He has authored a book, Game Plan: Pakistan Economic Gateway. The book lays out several gateways that could, one day in the future, connect Pakistan to multiple countries located on several continents, not just to its neighbours.
On reading the book, nine questions arose in my mind. I sent them to Niazi. His answers to my questions appear below.
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Ahmad Faruqui: What got you interested in writing this book?
Shahryar Khan Niazi: Writing this book was born out of a sense of strategic urgency. We have a dysfunctional governance system that has left an economic vacuum, forcing us to live from one crisis to the next. I developed the 'Pakistan Economic Gateway' as a policy proposal for the government, but I realised that to truly change a nation's direction, you must convince the public as much as the policymakers. This concept is a roadmap to move Pakistan from a state of 'strategic survival' to 'strategic indispensability.' I want the average Pakistani to see that our geography isn’t just a burden of history—it’s our greatest asset for future prosperity.
AF: SAARC has been around for a long time. It seems to have gone quiet because of political discord between the members, notably Pakistan and India. What economic benefits has it yielded to Pakistan?
SKN: Right now, SAARC is a muscle car parked in a garage with no fuel. The potential is massive—a market of two billion people—but political friction between Pakistan and India has kept it stagnant. While the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) exists on paper, its yields have been minimal compared to what they could be. However, we shouldn't dismiss it. It remains the only formal framework we have. The moment relations normalise between Pakistan and India, SAARC becomes the engine that could turn South Asia into a bloc as powerful as the European Union.
AF: CPEC (including the Gwadar Port) has been around for several years now, and the Karakoram Highway even longer. What economic benefits have they yielded?
SKN: CPEC’s primary win so far has been keeping the lights on. By adding 8,184 MW to our grid, it saved our industries from total collapse. The development of the South Asia Port Terminal and Gwadar Port has enabled Pakistan to accommodate larger container vessels, while the modernisation of the Karakoram Highway and the construction of new motorways have substantially improved inland connectivity, nearly halving travel times between southern and northern Pakistan. But we must be honest: CPEC is currently a 'transit' project, not yet a 'trade' corridor. For China, bypassing the Malacca Strait is the goal, but they won't do it at scale using trucks on roads; it’s too expensive. Without the Havelian-Kashgar rail link, we are just passive observers. Roads create connectivity, but only railways create corridors.
"We are sitting on a 21st-century goldmine—rare earth elements essential for smartphones and EVs—but we’ve been trying to dig them out with 19th-century methods"
AF: The burning of coal releases harmful gases into the atmosphere and contributes to climate change. Why should Pakistan consider exporting coal to India where it will be burned to produce electricity at power plants? How likely is it that India will even buy coal from Pakistan, and make its energy sector subject to blackmail if a war breaks out?
SKN: We should use economic interdependence as a tool for peace, rather than using energy as a weapon of war. It sounds counter-intuitive but look at the European Coal and Steel Community. It turned the very materials of war into the foundation for peace. Exporting coal to India from our Thar reserves near Mundra isn’t just about earning foreign exchange—though that would create thousands of jobs in our mining sectors—it’s about making very tangible the high opportunity cost of war. Once people grasp this fundamental fact, war would become unthinkable for both India and Pakistan. As for the environment, we must push for carbon-capture technology. We are using coal as a pragmatic economic bridge while we build the capital needed to transition to a greener future.
AF: You point out the vast reserves of rare earth minerals that are to be found in Balochistan. Why have they not been extracted for years? How long will it take to create the necessary infrastructure to extract them? What will it cost and who will pay it?
SKN: We are sitting on a 21st-century goldmine—rare earth elements essential for smartphones and EVs—but we’ve been trying to dig them out with 19th-century methods. The delay isn't just about money; it’s about a lack of a specialised regulatory framework. We’ve treated mining as a side-hustle rather than a national priority. To fix this, the state must lead with aero-magnetic surveys and satellite data to 'de-risk' the blocks for private investors. We need to stop selling raw rocks and start building an ecosystem.
AF: The book does a great job of laying out several economic gateways that would connect Pakistan not only to its neighbours but also to countries in other continents. But they have been around for decades and laid dormant. What will it take to make them a reality?
SKN: A gateway isn't just a road; it’s a development ecosystem. The Silk Road didn't die because the path disappeared; it died because the politics changed. To make these gateways work, we need more than asphalt; we need ‘software’—customs integration, logistics hubs, and investment zones. Today, the TIR (Transports Internationaux Routiers) system allows us to start moving goods immediately by road. The ‘hardware’ is largely there; the ‘software’ of diplomacy and trade facilitation is what we are missing. To activate these corridors, participating countries must be brought together under a formal framework.
AF: The new world order is collapsing. A new world order is emerging where might is right. A new wave of tariffs has arrived, along with other restrictions to international trade. The air is rife with political discord, which further dampens the enthusiasm that countries have for trading with each other. Against such a backdrop, how likely is it that the gateways you have so eloquently laid out will be implemented?
SKN: Gateways are no longer built out of enthusiasm for trade; they are built out of strategic desperation. In a world of rising tariffs and ‘might is right,’ a gateway is a lifeline. Countries are looking for multiple doors so that no one else can lock them out of the global supply chain. We are moving toward a ‘bloc-based’ trade system. This is exactly why Pakistan needs a multi-vector foreign policy. By building partnerships with multiple power centres, we make ourselves an indispensable hub, we ensure that no matter which way the global wind blows, the world still must come through our gates.
AF: Putting all the political considerations aside, what will be the cost of creating the gateways? Who will cover the cost?
SKN: The cost shouldn't fall solely on the Pakistani taxpayer. We must utilise public-private partnerships and multilateral funding. Many of our neighbours already have the infrastructure; they just need us to link up. Afghanistan needs rail; we need to upgrade our Quetta-Taftan line. When you build a project that makes money for everyone involved, the capital finds a way to get there. We aren’t asking for aid; we are offering an investment in regional stability.
AF: What will be the benefits of creating the gateways? How long will it take to realise them?
SKN: The benefits are peace and a paycheque. Road connectivity under the TIR system is functional today. We could see an uptick in transit fees and local employment almost immediately if the political will exists. However, the ‘big prize’—railway connectivity to Central Asia —is a 5-year horizon. We are already connected by rail and road with West Asia and Europe. We just need to invest in upgrading our infrastructure to make operations efficient and sustainable, but the result would be a Pakistan that is the beating heart of Eurasian trade.