A Primary Analysis On The "Afpak" Strategy Of Obama Administration

As a primary analysis on the "Afpak" strategy of Obama administration, this thesis tries to explore the origins, contents of the strategy and the challenges it faces. This thesis argues that the enaction of the strategy has a profound background. In recent years, the security situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan has gradually deteriorated, the terrorism and extremism also have directly posed a threat to the U. S. national security. On the other hand, Obama administration has actively adjusted its foreign policies and established a new diplomatic strategy guided by the "smart power" concept. The "Afpak" strategy is the product of these backgrounds mentioned above. With the changing anti-terrorism situation, the adjustment of "Afpak" strategy has been continually in progress and gradually become more mature, but the basic contents of the strategy still maintain consistency. The emphasis on multilateralism and combination of military and civil means constitutes the basic contents of the "Afpak" strategy, which have been fully reflected in implementation.However, the implementation of the "Afpak" strategy will not be smooth. For one thing, it faces the challenges from some countries and the regional international system. Also for another, it faces the counterattack from non-state actors and social levels. From the perspective of the former, the special geo-strategic location of "Afpak" decides that the U. S. will face the power confrontation from Russia and China, mainly in the competition on the Afghan transport corridor. From the point of view of the latter, the Taliban and Al Qaeda and other extremist organizations will bring long-lasting threat to the implementation of the "Afpak" strategy, which is closely linked to the social patterns of Afpak's border region, especially Pakistan's northwestern tribal area. In the face of the complex surrounding environments and the opponents'strong counterattack, it is rather difficult to achieve good results for the implementation of the "Afpak" strategy, and the prospect of the strategy seems not optimistic.