A profligate state: The financial cul-de-sac that confronts Pakistan

With a narrow industrial base and dysfunctional politics, and a counter-productive national security agenda, Pakistan could well remain an "international migraine", writes T N Ninan

Is this a seminal moment in Pakistan’s long-term decline? Ten days of intense negotiations with a visiting team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have brought the negotiators close to an agreement on how to manage the crisis-ridden economy in return for the release of a loan. But a deal is yet to be sealed and must wait for further parleys, to be conducted virtually, as the official IMF statement says. No IMF board approval is on the cards as yet.

Loan or no loan, Pakistan is in for hard times. The choice is between default and chaos, Sri Lanka