Maritime history of Pakistan#Contemporary era

{{See also|Maritime history of India}}

Baloch sailors have played a significant role in Indian Ocean trade networks.{{Cite journal |last=Shahrukh |first=Naufil |date=2024-06-28 |title=Transnational Baloch Ethnicity Across the Afro-Asian Ocean Region : Prospects for Regional Maritime Connectivity |url=https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.13169/polipers.21.1.ra3 |journal=Policy Perspectives |language=en |volume=21 |pages=43–58 |doi=10.13169/polipers.21.1.ra3 |issn=1812-1829|doi-access=free }} Sindhi cities such as Mohenjo-daro and Barbarikon grew significantly from this trade as well.{{Citation |last=Stefanile |first=Michele |title=The development of Roman maritime trade after the Second Punic war |work=The Sea in History - The Ancient World |pages=258–267 |url=https://doi.org/10.1017/9781782049081.023 |access-date=2025-05-08 |publisher=Boydell and Brewer Limited |isbn=978-1-78204-908-1}} The Indus River also facilitated exchanges.{{Cite web |title=Glimpses of the maritime history of Pakistan - ProQuest |url=https://www.proquest.com/openview/0a7673893bd7da9a96397b1e7e5e1b6e/1?cbl=1819375&pq-origsite=gscholar |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=www.proquest.com |language=en}}

Banbhore, a Sindhi city that was historically near the sea, was greatly expanded after the early Arab Muslim conquests.{{Cite journal |last=Mughal |first=Mohammad Rafique |date=1992 |title=Early Muslim Cities in Sindh and Patterns of International Trade |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20840081 |journal=Islamic Studies |volume=31 |issue=3 |pages=267–286 |issn=0578-8072}}

Almost 30% of Omanis are of Baloch origin. They have been in the country for centuries, and contribute to positive Oman–Pakistan relations.{{Cite journal |last=Habib |first=Fatima |date=2017 |title=The Maritime Neighbor: Pakistan's Relations with Oman – A Review |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.13169/polipers.14.1.0105?seq=1 |journal=Policy Perspectives |volume=14 |issue=1 |pages=105–119 |doi=10.13169/polipers.14.1.0105 |issn=1812-1829}}

{{See also|British conquest of Sindh}}

{{See also|Ministry of Maritime Affairs (Pakistan)}}

Before the 1948 Indian annexation of the princely state of Junagadh, Pakistan and Junagadh's Nawab reasoned that Junagadh was close enough to Pakistan, being linked by a sea route (Veraval to Karachi), to become part of Pakistan.{{harvp|Raghavan, War and Peace in Modern India|2010|pp=31–32}}: 'Jinnah assured Bhutto that he would not allow Junagadh to be “starved out or tyrannized and that Veraval was not far from Karachi.”' Sir Creek continues to be party to a border dispute between India and Pakistan, with maritime trespassing taking place in the area.{{Cite web |title=Maritime issues between Pakistan and India: seeking cooperation and regional stability |url=https://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/27783 |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=calhoun.nps.edu}}

In the early years, the Pakistani Navy helped in setting up shipping services and improving port sites such as the Chalna Port (now Bangladesh's Port of Mongla).{{Cite web |date=1958-09-01 |title=The Pakistan Navy |url=https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1958/september/pakistan-navy |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=U.S. Naval Institute |language=en}}

In 1974, the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) was formed, with the shipping industry being nationalised. From that point onwards, the sea-going capacity of Pakistan has declined.{{Cite web |date=2020-04-22 |title=Pakistan shipping industry, brief history and role of seafarers in national development |url=https://dailytimes.com.pk/600057/pakistan-shipping-industry-brief-history-and-role-of-seafarers-in-national-development/ |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=Daily Times |language=en-US}} Despite 95% of Pakistan's trade being conducted through the sea, there has been a lack of awareness and focus on developing the nation's maritime potential.{{Cite journal |last=Azmie |first=Sohail A. |date=2018-01-01 |title=Maritime Awareness in Pakistan |url=https://www.academia.edu/40346353/Maritime_Awareness_in_Pakistan |journal=CISS Insight}} Territorial security threats on land have been a factor in the military paying less attention to the ocean,{{Cite journal |last=Khan |first=Muhammad |title=Maritime history and Muslims -II |url=https://www.academia.edu/27932838/Maritime_history_and_Muslims_II}} with Oman's navy size surpassing Pakistan's.{{Cite web |last=Franklin |first=Smith and |title=An Insight into Pakistan’s Maritime Trade Comparing Maritime Neighborhood |url=https://researcherslinks.com/current-issues/An-Insight-into-Pakistan-Maritime-Trade-Comparing/26/8/5961/html |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=researcherslinks.com |language=En-UK |doi=10.17582/journal.pujz/2023.38.1.27.35}}File:Gwadar Port.jpg]]

Balochistan and its Gwadar Port have become important for Pakistan's modern maritime trade, with India and the United States concerned around Chinese involvement in the form of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.{{Cite journal |last=Shah |first=Ali Zaman |date=2017 |title=Geopolitical Significance of Balochistan: Interplay of Foreign Actors |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/48537561 |journal=Strategic Studies |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=126–144 |issn=1029-0990}}

During the 2025 India–Pakistan standoff, maritime trade was suspended between the two nations.{{Cite web |title=India and Pakistan Halt Maritime Trade |url=https://maritime-executive.com/article/india-and-pakistan-halt-maritime-trade |access-date=2025-05-08 |website=The Maritime Executive |language=en}}

{{Reflist}}{{Pakistan topics}}

*