Pakistan's military and its affiliated commercial organisations have retained direct access to the country's valuable natural resources with little transparency or public accountability, according to a report published by the European Times. The findings, released on 7 November from Brussels, detail how army-linked entities have entrenched themselves in economic decision-making — from mineral extraction in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to formal seats in investment bodies — while civilian governments absorb public criticism for governance failures.

The Civil-Military Arrangement

The report argues that Pakistan's military has refined a model of indirect power over decades. As the European Times detailed: 'Pakistan's powerful army has realised over time that it need not govern directly to exercise power. There were pitfalls. It was made accountable for the failures of governance and wrong decisions. So a new arrangement has come into existence, where civil politicians occupy government offices, formulate policies as well as face public anger, while the military holds the reins of power, allowing it to retain a decisive influence over strategic affairs and expand its economic interests.'

This arrangement, critics argue, insulates the military from democratic accountability while allowing it to accumulate substantial commercial interests. Politicians and bureaucrats, by contrast, continue to face scrutiny — a disparity the report says reflects a structural imbalance between civilian and military authority.

Mineral Extraction and Army-Linked Contracts

The report highlights mineral exploitation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other provinces as a concrete illustration of this dynamic. Army-linked organisations are reportedly involved directly in mineral extraction, enabling senior officials and elite networks to generate significant profits. According to the European Times: 'Public queries about mining contracts, operations, royalties, income generation, and exports remain unanswered. Nobody in Pakistan can question its army. Neither the civil government nor the judiciary.'

A specific case cited is the Muhammad Khel copper mine in North Waziristan, where the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) — a military engineering body — has reportedly received a contract to operate the facility. The report notes that FWO is entitled to 50 percent of profits from the mine. Critically, no government records have reportedly furnished details about the quantity or value of copper recovered, raising questions about whether the resource is being extracted for public benefit or institutional gain. The report described this as 'a clear clash between the province's economic interest and military-linked commercial activity.'

The Role of the SIFC

The report also examines the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a hybrid civil-military economic body established to accelerate investment in Pakistan. While its stated mandate is investment promotion, the European Times noted that the organisation's role appears to have expanded well beyond this, reinforcing the military's formal and institutionalised presence in economic governance. This, the report argues, makes transparency around preferential treatment extended to military-linked organisations all the more critical.

Accountability Gap and Democratic Deficit

The broader concern raised by the report is the erosion of democratic accountability. The government has reportedly been deprived of tax revenues and income as a result of these arrangements, while public scrutiny remains effectively blocked. The report's framing suggests that the civilian facade of governance masks a deeper structural reality: that consequential economic decisions — particularly those involving natural resources — are made within military channels, beyond the reach of elected institutions or the judiciary.

This is not the first time Pakistan's civil-military imbalance has drawn international attention. Analysts have long noted that army-linked conglomerates — spanning real estate, agriculture, and infrastructure — operate with limited regulatory oversight. The SIFC's emergence and the FWO's mining contracts represent, according to the report, a newer and more formalised iteration of this pattern. As pressure mounts from international lenders and trading partners for governance reforms, the gap between Pakistan's civilian accountability structures and its military's economic footprint is likely to face growing scrutiny.