NUCLEARIZATION OF SOUTH ASIA AND ITS IMPLICATIONS ON THE ECONOMY OF THE REGION

Abstract

With a primary focus on India and Pakistan after their overt nuclearization in 1998, this research study examines the complex economic effects of nuclearization in South Asia. The paper explores the ways in which the need for nuclear deterrence has influenced defense budgets, discouraged foreign investment, slowed economic expansion, and impeded regional collaboration. The study's qualitative and descriptive methodology, backed by academic research and empirical data, leads it to the conclusion that nuclear rivalry has severely hampered economic development, particularly in Pakistan, even though it has stabilized strategic deterrence. To lessen the economic effects of strategic militarization in South Asia, the study urges improved crisis management, a rebalancing of defense and development goals, and the revitalization of regional economic frameworks.