Muhammad Arslan
Diplomacy is a method that governments use to influence the actions of foreign governments through peaceful tactics such as negotiation and dialogue.
Defense diplomacy is a relatively new term, created in response to post-Cold War needs to name new tasks and international functions completed by the armed forces and the leadership of the Ministries of National Defence.
The main goal of defense diplomacy is the co-formation and implementation of the state security policy, and its task – is to create stable, long-term international relations in the field of defense.
Conceptualization of the concept is a starting point for understanding its role as one of the most important instruments of foreign policy and the security of contemporary states.
Military diplomacy can be broadly defined as a set of non-combat activities carried out by a country’s armed forces to advance its national diplomatic interests.
Military diplomatic activities often take the form of joint military exercises, high-level military dialogues, and naval port calls.
Joint Military Exercises are one of the most visible forms of military diplomatic activity. It typically involves the militaries of participating countries performing traditional and non-traditional operations.
Military diplomacy is the conduct by military exercises in which delegations from across the world together for mutual exercises, negotiations and other relations between nations to nations, militaries to and nations, citizens aimed at influencing the environment in which the military operates.
These efforts include both the traditional aspects of diplomacy, as well as the non-traditional informal aspects of public diplomacy.
Military diplomacy is complementary to Pakistan’s foreign policy and plays its due role in fostering Pakistan’s bilateral relations with other states.
Pakistan Armed forces are the main pillars of it. In this regard, Pakistan Navy organised its 8th international AMAN exercises from 9th February to 14th February 2023.
Concurrently, Pakistan International Maritime Expo & Conference (PIMEC) was also organized in order to jump-start development in the maritime sector.
Pakistan Navy conducted a series of large-scale naval exercises under the banner of AMAN 2023. The exercises AMAN, meaning ‘peace’ in Urdu, is part of the Pakistan Navy’s efforts to promote peace and stability in the region.
The exercise is being conducted biennially and brings together navies from different parts of the world in order to foster interoperability and sharing of experiences amongst the participating navies.
The exercise also serves as a platform to build mutual trust and confidence amongst the navies of different countries.
Aman represents a ‘bridge’ that allows several countries to meet and operate through their naval forces with each other with the slogan of “Together for peace and security”.
More than 50 countries from all continents participated in this exercise. The first exercises started in 2007 with only 3 countries, now PN has more than 50 partners in AMAN exercises. It was held in two phases, harbor, and sea.
In the harbor phase, activities such as seminars, operational discussions, professional demonstrations, international get together and pre-sail planning of evolutions at sea were conducted.
Whereas in the second stage (sea phase), tactical maneuvers, maritime-related exercises such as anti-piracy and counter-terrorism, search and rescue, gunnery firings, and air defense exercises, are showcased accordingly.
It involved the participation of various naval vessels, special operation forces, and air assets from different countries of the world.
The latest iteration of the exercise involved a series of training drills to counter-terrorism, piracy, narco-arms trafficking, and climate change.
Participating countries included all of Pakistan’s allies and partners, such as China, the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), France, and Turkey.
The main objective of the exercises is to enhance interoperability between navies from different countries, through the sharing of knowledge and training in maritime security.
The exercises are a testament to the Pakistan Navy’s commitment to regional security and stability. The exercise helped to strengthen ties between participating navies and enable them to work together in times of crisis.
The exercise was conducted in accordance with international law, and there were no provocative activities or hostile actions, or prejudice.
The main achievements of AMAN are extraordinary dependence on the seas for trade, secondly, operationalisation of the CPEC [China Pakistan Economic Corridor] project and thirdly, highlighting our strategic location which astride the global energy highway.
Similarly, diplomatic conferences are the traditional method for negotiation and peace-building. Significantly, for the first time in history, PIMEC was organised in Karachi from 10-12 February 2023 encompassing Maritime Expo & International Conference on Blue Economy and Maritime Potential.
It includes a large number of activities in the maritime industry both in public and private sectors to showcase products and develop business relationships.
The event also highlighted Pakistan’s Maritime potential and provided the desired fillip for economic growth at the national level.
In PIMEC academic delegations of more than 50 states participated along with, the ambassadors, high commissioners, senior military officers, defense and naval attaches of various countries also witnessed the maritime conference.
In addition, it provided a platform for naval cooperation and the exchange of ideas. It also served as a platform for the participating navies and academia to showcase their capabilities and foster better understanding amongst the navies of different countries.
The workshops helped foster friendship, bridging gaps and making it possible for countries to operate together in the pursuance of shared objectives.
In conclusion, the AMAN exercise and PIMEC have a direct impact on foreign policy of Pakistan. This series of exercises aims to enhance cooperation and interoperability among the multinational maritime forces to further strengthen and maintain regional stability.
The exercise and workshops featured an exchange of ideas by distinguished international and Pakistani scholars on the theme of ‘Development of Blue Economy Under a Secure and Sustainable Environment.
Despite the current economic crisis of Pakistan, PN has achieved foreign policy goals of Pakistan by joining more than 50 countries under the umberrlla of AMAN & PIMEC.
The writer is an MPhil Scholar at National Defence University, Islamabad. He has an expert in foreign policy, soft power, and diplomacy & can be contacted at choudharyarslan93@gmail.com.
**The Diplomatic Insight does not take any position on issues and the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Diplomatic Insight and its staff.
