Browsing by Author "Anwar, Muhammad Waqar"

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    The Changing Contours of Maritime Security in The South China Sea
    (Center for International Strategic Studies, 2017) Anwar, Muhammad Waqar
    The South China Sea (SCS) is one of the most significant regions of the world. As the main passageway between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the Sea carries one-third of global maritime trade1. Therefore, many countries, and particularly the countries that have a stake in maritime commerce are concerned about the safety and security of the transit of goods. The change in US approach in 2010 which is known as the 'Asia Pivot' or rebalancing strategy has prompted a renewed focus on the SCS, as the rebalancing arrangement incorporated a military segment also. The US declared the moving of 60 percent of its maritime capability to the Asia Pacific. This aspect has considerably added to the strategic significance of the SCS. The SCS is a partially enclosed sea formed by seven littoral states: China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines. The SCS extends from Taiwan in the north to the waters contiguous to Indonesia and the Straits of Malacca and Singapore in the south. The SCS has 200 small islets, rocks, and reefs spread over 1,700 miles. After Chinese occupation of the Spratly Islands in 1974, a Chinese journal highlighted the importance of the SCS ‘as lying between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific, and performing the function of a doorway to the outside world for the landmass and the littoral islands of China’.2 Moreover, the recent tensions in the SCS with the naval presence of China and the US and other developments have further increased the geostrategic importance by a great degree.
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    Cybersecurity in Pakistan: Regulations, Gaps and Way Forward
    (30/12/2020) Khan, Umair Pervez; Anwar, Muhammad Waqar
    We live in the age of information and globalization. From paying online utility bills to advance health structure, up to date transportation, use of artificial intelligence, developed communication system and technical warfare, modern states are in continuous progress. Technology has reduced the distances, yet new threats and fears have emerged due to its usage. The digital world is under constant cyber threats and crimes such as hacking, bank frauds, money laundering, information theft, state secrets acquired, and even threats to critical infrastructure have become the evolving trends in cyber warfare. Both the developed states as well as developing nations are exposed to such threats leading to national security dilemma. However, developing country, having nuclear capabilities, like Pakistan, is more vulnerable to these threats. Pakistan also has large number of internet users with low information technology knowledge, thus making it further complex for the government and law-making authorities to regulate its digital world. Recently, Pakistan has faced serious cyber-attacks on important institutional websites and hackers have been able to successfully penetrate the cyber space of important installations. To prevent this from happening, legislators in Pakistan have introduced the cyber laws, which do not seem to cover the threats in depth and totality. This research paper focuses on the cybersecurity framework present in Pakistan while what are the policy options for the state of Pakistan to deal with serious cybersecurity issues is the actual matter of concern? The research methodology is qualitative in nature and researchers have used primary as well as secondary sources to draw the conclusions. At the end, few recommendations regarding the improvement in cyber protocols of the country are also put forth.