The recent diplomatic manoeuvres between Pakistan and Bangladesh have disrupted South Asia’s geopolitical balance. Islamabad’s outreach to Dhaka’s interim administration, led by high-level military talks and logistic offerings such as access to Karachi Port, signals more than routine diplomacy, reported Republic World.

It reflects an overture towards reviving a long-dormant axis, one that could challenge India’s eastern stability and strategic depth.

The developing links recall the Cold War era when Pakistan sought leverage in East Bengal. However, the contemporary environment differs sharply. Bangladesh’s infrastructure, trade flows, and energy grids remain deeply interlinked with India.

Even limited alignment with Pakistan therefore carries inherent economic and political risks for Dhaka, making any sustained anti-India posture potentially self-defeating.

Talk of exploiting the so-called “chicken necks” exposes a fundamental miscalculation. The narrow Siliguri Corridor—a vital link between India’s mainland and its north-eastern states—is one of the most heavily monitored and fortified zones in Asia.

Complementing this, the Eastern Command’s mountain-adapted strike units, air mobility assets, and layered air defence network leave little room for surprise manoeuvres from any adversarial formation east of the Padma.

While parts of Bangladesh’s terrain provide proximity to India’s border regions, they also impose heavy operational limitations. Soft soil, riverine belts, and dense habitation restrict rapid troop movement. Any attempt to apply pressure near Tripura or West Bengal would expose Bangladesh’s own logistical vulnerabilities, rendering such adventurism unsustainable under even limited Indian counteraction.

Myanmar’s geostrategic relevance has quietly expanded. New Delhi’s infrastructure projects, including the Kaladan Multimodal Transit and road-link initiatives through Sittwe Port, grant India alternative access routes to the Northeast that bypass Bangladesh entirely. Moreover, years of joint counter-insurgency operations have established mutual trust between Indian and Myanmar forces, providing a dependable stabilising vector in the region.

Rather than direct confrontation, India appears to be adopting a calibrated, integrated posture. Strategic road networks, rapid-deployment airbases, and enhanced intelligence cooperation across its eastern flank position India for swift deterrence. The country’s doctrine of multi-domain readiness—including cyber, space, and electronic warfare components—adds further depth to its defensive net.

For both Pakistan and Bangladesh, pursuing this alignment risks overstretching limited capacities. Pakistan lacks sustained logistical reach in the Bay of Bengal, while Bangladesh faces immense domestic scrutiny over its foreign alignments. An overt tilt against India could disrupt trade, economic stability, and public sentiment in Dhaka, eroding any short-term diplomatic gains.

The Chicken Neck Conspiracy, if pursued, may deliver more instability than strategic advantage. India’s geography, preparedness, and layered diplomacy—especially with Myanmar—undercut the premise of coercion from the east. Any attempt to weaponize geography against India could instead expose the fragility of those attempting it.

Based On Republic World Report