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From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia
Pakistan (Urdu: پاکِستان), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a
country in South Asia. It has a 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) coastline along the
Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and
Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast.[6]
Tajikistan also lies very close to Pakistan but is separated by the narrow
Wakhan Corridor. Thus, it occupies a crossroads position between South Asia,
Central Asia and the Middle East.[7] The region forming modern Pakistan was
at the heart of the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and then later was the
recipient of Vedic, Persian, Indo-Greek, Turco-Mongol, Islamic and Sikh
cultures. The area has witnessed invasions and/or settlements by the
Indo-Aryans, Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Afghans, Mongols and the
British
While the Indian
independence movement demanded an independent India, the Pakistan Movement
(led by Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah of the Muslim League) sought
independent states for the majority Muslim populations of the eastern and
western regions of British India as well. The British granted independence
and also the creation of one Muslim majority state of Pakistan that
comprised the provinces of Sindh, North-West Frontier Province, West Punjab,
Balochistan and East Bengal. With the adoption of its constitution in 1956,
Pakistan became an Islamic republic. In 1971, a civil war in East Pakistan
resulted in the creation of Bangladesh.
Pakistan's history has been characterized by periods of military rule,
political instability and conflicts with neighboring India. It is the sixth
most populous country in the world and has the second largest Muslim
population after Indonesia.[9] Pakistan also has the second largest Shia
Muslim population.[10] It is the only Muslim-majority nuclear state and is
classified as major non-NATO ally of the United States. Pakistan is one of
the founders of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and a member of
the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, Next Eleven economies and G20
developing nations. |
