Jets, gas and economic fragility — high-risk Pakistan is badly trapped
Vivek Y Kelkar
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January 15, 2026 8:45 PM
New Delhi: Pakistan is trying to sell two futures at once — and neither is guaranteed. Even as Islamabad markets the JF-17 as a “budget multirole” fighter to cash-strapped air forces, it is simultaneously advertising its coastline as the next energy frontier, awarding offshore oil and gas blocks after years of exploration disappointment. The spectacle is revealing: a state scrambling to monetise both defence and geology because it lacks the one commodity that matters most — a strong economy.
