PAKİSTAN'IN AFGANİSTAN'A YÖNELİK 'STRATEJİK DERİNLİĞE' DAYALI DIŞ POLİTİKASI (1950-2025)

Since its independence, Pakistan has viewed the security and stability of Afghanistan as an integral part of its national security, a sensitivity further deepened by the perceived threat posed by India's presence in Afghanistan. The "strategic depth" approach, shaped within this context, has been a fundamental axis of Pakistan's Afghanistan policy in various historical phases until the Taliban's return to power in 2021. This article focuses on the fundamental question: How has the orientation of Pakistan's strategic depth-centered Afghanistan policy transformed from independence to 2025? Using a descriptive method, the study argues that Pakistan's strategic depth policy during the Cold War was primarily based on geopolitical concerns, manifesting in the 1990s as a combination of geopolitical interests and ideological affinity—particularly through support for the Taliban—and shifting towards geo-economic factors after the Taliban's return to power in 2021. The study also identifies that local and international factors, such as the negative security consequences of supporting the Taliban, increasing instability in tribal areas, economic and diplomatic pressures, and China's growing strategic role, have led Pakistan to reassess its Afghanistan policy. This transformation represents a shift from the traditional strategic depth approach to a more pragmatic policy line based on economic cooperation and regional stability. In this context, the withdrawal of US and NATO forces from Afghanistan and the return of the Taliban to power in 2021 serve as a practical test of this transformation. In conclusion, while the concept of strategic depth persists in Pakistan's security culture, its nature and implementation tools have undergone significant changes.