Porting Gwadar from Security and Strategy lens: Organic Asian Security Architecture.

A strong and efficiently run sea port can be an important asset for a country or region in trying to improve its economic position. The port activities generate not only employment but also provide value added services. A sea port can be an important point of attraction for a broad range of activities. In past decades, the role of port management has changed quite fundamentally. The ports have evolved from being a supervisory determining capacity to a more subordinate function that often consist of providing the required facilities for parties involved in port operations. Though the situation has now changed, modern ports especially in Hamburg-Le Havre were involved in fierce competitive struggle for attracting good flows, shipping lines, infrastructure and industrial investment. The objectives of the port authorities are closely connected with the economic purposes of the sea ports. In the past these goals were restricted mainly to increasing throughput, generating value added service, creating local employment and maximizing operating profits. The term port product is a chain of different links, while the port as a whole is likewise a link in a global logistic chain. Due to significant technological developments, increased containerization rate, larger vessels and handling through artificial intelligence have enhanced the efficiency of ports on one hand resultantly change in various links of the ports.
According to future challenges for the Ports and Shipping London informa, the goals of a port authority are determined in part by the degree to which this authority is, directly or indirectly, subjected to foreign influences, external control or competition from other ports. These goals may differ considerably and may change profoundly over the due course of time. The different traditions of running and operating the ports have resulted in two important but diametrically opposed philosophies. First, there is continental approach whereby the port is managed by the port authority, the maritime access routes and the connections with the interior are more the responsibilities of central authorities and the cargo handling along various other services are in private hands. Diametrically opposed to this continental tradition stands the port that is run as ‘total organizations’ whereby by maritime access, the port and cargo handling are the responsibility of a single organization that supervises all port operations. Thus, sea ports possess characteristic of public utilities on the one hand and of private enterprises on the other. Cargo handling and other related activities are commercial operations that under normal circumstances do not need subsidizing.
Pakistan is a rapidly developing maritime state and has three big sea ports. The port of Gwadar is a newly developed deep sea port and is one of the deepest ports across the globe. It is located at the entrance of the Persian gulf, about 635 km west of Karachi. Gwadar has an immense geostrategic significance for various aspects. Gwadar has immense potential to gain the status of a regional shipping and economic hub. It can provide an alternative to Gulf ports and also provide a vital link to Central Asian Republics, thus attracting transit and transshipment trade. It has a 600 km long coastline and features prominent in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor plan. It is considered to be a link between the Belt and Road initiative and maritime Silk Road projects. According to Chairman Gwadar Port Authority Pakistan’s annual trade is about 94 million tons out of 95%takes place through the sea. The Gwadar port has potential to act as a gateway to the Indian Ocean and provide warm water access to the entire region. Gwadar port will monitor the sea lanes of communication that originate from Persian Gulf and bottleneck at the strait of Hurmuz. The establishment of Gwadar port can easily influence and counter India’s inspiration for Blue Water Navy and US 5th naval fleet domination in Arabian Sea. India being a dominant littoral state is aspiring to build a “Blue Water Navy '' with assistance of the US to dominate the regional sea lines of communications so as to deny other such SLOCs to regional powers like China and Japan. The presence of the US 5th Naval Fleet in the Persian gulf consisting of two aircraft is not only to monitor and control the shipping activities in the region but to assist US troops deployed all over the region. The Gwadar port is so strategically important that it can change the maritime dynamics in South, East and West Asia. The formation of Quad, AUKUS and POLRIS 21 followed by Russia-Ukraine war the establishment and operations of the Gwadar Port will generate a seaborne trade competition amongst the states in East and West Asia compelling the other states to rethink and re-evaluate whether to rely on the US as a strategic partner or not. It would not be wrong to say that Gwadar is the cornerstone in the future of Asia.
International Law is based on the principles of equality and equity and treats a dwarf equally a man as a giant. The presence of US in near future might jeopardize the interests of other states. Organic Asian Security Architecture can be generated if we start working at the basic development levels of this port region. The success of Free Economic Zones depends on how well development is packaged and sold with sense of security. The FEZs include Gwadar Port Free Zone which is approximately 2,280 acres, GIEDA industrial zone which is around 3, 000 acres and EPZA export processing zone that constitutes 1000 acres and these can play pivotal role in devising organic Asian security architecture from the Gwadar Port and will focus on creating backup port industry for Gwadar. The marketing of port should be done in conjunction with the FEZ and latterly the port should proceed with its own marketing. There is no doubt that dedicated facilities should be allocated within FEZ to investors or governments to be partners and stakeholders in development of Gwadar’s FEZ through Public Private Partnerships.