Q.3. Examine the relations of Pakistan with India
Pakistan’s Relation with India
Since partition of the sub-continent in 1947, relations between Pakistan and India have been characterized by rivalry and suspicion. The animosity has its roots in religion and history, and is epitomized by the long-running conflict over the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Historical Background
The Indian Sub Continent was partitioned into Hindu-dominated India and the newly created Muslim state of Pakistan after India’s independence from Great Britain in 1947. Severe rioting and population movement ensued and an estimated half a million people were killed in communal violence. About a million people were left homeless. Since partition, the territory of Jammu and Kashmir has remained in dispute with Pakistan and India both holding sectors.
First Indo-Pakistan War 1947-49
At the time of partition, the princely state of Kashmir, though ruled by a Hindu Maharaja, had an overwhelmingly Muslim population. When the Maharaja hesitated in acceding to either Pakistan or India in 1947, some of his Muslim subjects, aided by tribesmen from Pakistan, revolted in favor of joining Pakistan.
The first Indo-Pakistan war started after armed tribesmen from Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province invaded Kashmir in October 1947. Besieged both by a revolt n his state and by the invasion, the Maharaja requested armed assistance from the Government of India. In return he acceded to India, handling over powers of defense, communication and foreign affairs. Both India and Pakistan agreed that the accession would be confirmed by a referendum once hostilities had ceased. In May 1948, the regular Pakistani army was called upon to protect Pakistan’s borders. Fighting continued throughout the year between Pakistani irregular troops and the Indian army. The war ended on 1st January 1949 when a ceasefire was arranged by the United Nations which recommended that both India and Pakistan should adhere to their commitment to hold a referendum in the state. A ceasefire line was established where the two sides stopped fighting and a UN peacekeeping force established. The referendum, however has never been held.
The 1965 War
In April 1965, a clash between border patrols erupted into fighting in the Rann of Kutch, a sparsely inhabited region along the south-western Indo-Pakistan border. When the Indians withdrew, Pakistan claimed victory. Later full-scale hostilites erupted in September 1965, when India alleged that insurgents trained and supplied by Pakistan were operating in India-controlled Kashmir. Hostilities ceased three weaks later, following mediation efforts by the UN and interested countries. In January 1966, Indian and Pakistani representatives met in Tashkent, U.S.S.R., and agreed to attempt a peaceful settlement of Kashmir and their other differences.
The 1971 War
Indo-Pakistani relations deteriorated again when civil war erupted in Pakistan, pitting the West Pakistan army against East Pakistanis demanding autonomy and independence. In December India invaded East Pakistan in support of the East Pakistani people. The Pakistani army surrendered at Dhaka and its army of more than 90,000 became India prisoners of war. East Pakistan became the independent country of Bangladesh on 6th December 1971.
Indian Troops and Siachen Glacier 1984
India’s nuclear test in 1974 generated great uncertainty in Pakistan and is generally acknowledged to have been the impetus for Pakistan’s nuclear weapons development program. In 1983, the Pakistani and Indian governments accused each other of aiding separatists in their respective countries, i.e., Sikhs in India’s Punjab state and Sindhis in Pakistan’s Sindh province. In April 1984, tensions erupted after troops were deployed to the Siachen Glacier, a high-altitude desolate area close to the China border left undemarcated by the cease-fire agreement (Karachi Agreement) signed by Pakistan and India in 1949.
Tensions diminished after Rajiv Gandhi became Prime Minister in November 1984 and after a group of Sikh hijackers was brought to trial by Pakistan in March 1985. In December 1985, President Zia and Prime Minister Gandhi pledged not to attack each other’s nuclear facilities. In early 1986, the Indian and Pakistani governments began high-level talks to resolve the Siachen Glacier border dispute and to improve trade.
Kashmir Insurgency 1990
Bilateral tensions increased in early 1990, when Kashmiri militants began a compaign of violence against Indian Government authority in Jammu and Kashmir. Subsequent high-level bilateral meetings relieved the tensions between India and Pakistan, but relations worsened again after the destruction of the Ayodhya Masjid by Hindu extremists in December 1992 and terrorists bombings in Bombay in March 1993. Talks between the Foreign Secretaries of both countries in January 1994 resulted in deadlock.
Diplomatic Push 1996-97
In the last several years, the Indo-Pakistani relationship has veered sharply between rapprochement and conflict. After taking office in February 1997, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif moved to resume official dialogue with India. A number of meetings at the foreign secretary and Prime Ministerial level took place with positive atmospherics but little concrete progress. In a speech at the UN, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif offered to open talks on a non-aggression pact with India, proposing that both nations strike a deal to restrain their nuclear and missile capabilities.
Nuclear Rivalry 1998
The arms race between the rivals escalated dramatically in the 1990s. In May 1998, India conducted underground nuclear tests in the western desert state of Rajasthan near the border with Pakistan. In response, Pakistan conducted six tests in Balochistan. In the same year, Pakistan test its longest range missile, the 1,500 km (932 mile) Ghauri missile, named after the 12th Century Muslim warrior who conquered part of India. Both sides were heavily criticized by the international community for the tests as fears of a nuclear confrontation grew.
The United States ordered sanctions against both countries, freezing more than $20bn of aid, loans and trade. Japan ordered a block on about $1bn of aid loans. Several European countries followed suit, and the G-8 governments imposed a ban on non-humanitarian loans to India and Pakistan. The UN Security Council condemned India and Pakistan for carrying out nuclear tests and urged the two nations to stop all nuclear weapons programmes.
Indian Prime Minister Atal Vajpayee Visit to Pakistan 1999
The relationship improved markedly when Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee traveled to Lahore for a summit with Sharif in February 1999. There was considerable hope that the meeting could lead to a breakthrough. They signed the Lahore accord pledging again to “intensify their efforts to resolve all issues, including the issue of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Kargil Conflict 1999
Unfortunately, in May 1999 India launched air strikes against Pakistani backed forces that had infiltrated into the mountains in Indian-administrated Kashmir, north of Kargil. Pakistan responded by occupying positions on the Indian side of the Line of Control in the remote, mountainous area of Kashmir near Kargil threatening the ability of India to supply its forces on Siachen Glacier. By early summer, serious fighting flared in the Kargil sector. The infiltrators withdrew following a meeting between Prime Minister Sharif and President Bill Clinton in July. Relations between India nad Pakistan have since been particularly strained, especially since the October 12, 1999 coup in Islamabad.
The Brink of War 2001
Tension along the ceasefire lined continued. The worst fighting for more than a year broke out in October as India, which continued to condemn Pakistan for cross-border terrorism, started shelling Pakistani military positions. October saw a devastating attack on the Kashmiri assembly in Srinagar in which 38 people were killed. After the attack, the Chief Minister of Indian-administrated Kashmir, Farooque Abdullah called on Indian Government to launch a war against militant training camps across the border in Pakistan.
On 13th December, an armed attack on the Indian Parliament in Delhi left 14 people dead. India again blamed Pakistani-backed Kashmiri militants. The attack led to a dramatic build-up of troops along the Indo-Pakistan border, military exchanges and raised fears of a wider conflict. Rail and bus services between the two countries were also blocked.
Relaxation of Tension 2003
A relaxation of tension began in 2003, when then Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee called for a dialogue. Rail and bus services between the two countries resumed, and the two countries agreed to a ceasefire in Kashmir.
Summit Talks 2004
Twelfth SAARC Summit was held in Islamabad in January 2004. On this occasion President Parvez Musharraf met Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on 5th January 2004. In this summit talk India and Pakistan resumed comprehensive discussions with an agenda the included the Kashmir problem, confidence-building measures, and ways to provide security against terrorism.
No War Pact 2004
These comprehensive consultations have steadily built up trust, resulting in agreements to continue the suspension of nuclear tests, to give prior notification of missile tests, and to seek a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir problem. On June 20, 2004, both countries signed “No War Pact” and agreed to extend a nuclear testing ban and to set up a hotline between their foreign secretaries aimed at preventing misunderstandings that might lead to a nuclear war.
Musharraf’s Unofficial Visit to India 2005
In April 2005 President Parvez Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh agreed on various new confidence-building measures between the two nations. Their talks, held during Mr. Musharraf’s unofficial visit to India on April 17, produced agreement, for example, on the passage of trucks for commercial purposes over Kashmir’s Line of Control, or ceasefire line. This is expected to greatly help ease tensions between the countries.
The improvement of relations between India and Pakistan still involves uncertain factors such as the activities of Islamic extremists, but efforts should be stepped up so that the latest summit can serve as a favorable tail wind for accelerating the thaw between the two nations.
Since partition of the sub-continent in 1947, relations between Pakistan and India have been characterized by rivalry and suspicion. The animosity has its roots in religion and history, and is epitomized by the long-running conflict over the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Historical Background
The Indian Sub Continent was partitioned into Hindu-dominated India and the newly created Muslim state of Pakistan after India’s independence from Great Britain in 1947. Severe rioting and population movement ensued and an estimated half a million people were killed in communal violence. About a million people were left homeless. Since partition, the territory of Jammu and Kashmir has remained in dispute with Pakistan and India both holding sectors.
First Indo-Pakistan War 1947-49
At the time of partition, the princely state of Kashmir, though ruled by a Hindu Maharaja, had an overwhelmingly Muslim population. When the Maharaja hesitated in acceding to either Pakistan or India in 1947, some of his Muslim subjects, aided by tribesmen from Pakistan, revolted in favor of joining Pakistan.
The first Indo-Pakistan war started after armed tribesmen from Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province invaded Kashmir in October 1947. Besieged both by a revolt n his state and by the invasion, the Maharaja requested armed assistance from the Government of India. In return he acceded to India, handling over powers of defense, communication and foreign affairs. Both India and Pakistan agreed that the accession would be confirmed by a referendum once hostilities had ceased. In May 1948, the regular Pakistani army was called upon to protect Pakistan’s borders. Fighting continued throughout the year between Pakistani irregular troops and the Indian army. The war ended on 1st January 1949 when a ceasefire was arranged by the United Nations which recommended that both India and Pakistan should adhere to their commitment to hold a referendum in the state. A ceasefire line was established where the two sides stopped fighting and a UN peacekeeping force established. The referendum, however has never been held.
The 1965 War
In April 1965, a clash between border patrols erupted into fighting in the Rann of Kutch, a sparsely inhabited region along the south-western Indo-Pakistan border. When the Indians withdrew, Pakistan claimed victory. Later full-scale hostilites erupted in September 1965, when India alleged that insurgents trained and supplied by Pakistan were operating in India-controlled Kashmir. Hostilities ceased three weaks later, following mediation efforts by the UN and interested countries. In January 1966, Indian and Pakistani representatives met in Tashkent, U.S.S.R., and agreed to attempt a peaceful settlement of Kashmir and their other differences.
The 1971 War
Indo-Pakistani relations deteriorated again when civil war erupted in Pakistan, pitting the West Pakistan army against East Pakistanis demanding autonomy and independence. In December India invaded East Pakistan in support of the East Pakistani people. The Pakistani army surrendered at Dhaka and its army of more than 90,000 became India prisoners of war. East Pakistan became the independent country of Bangladesh on 6th December 1971.
Indian Troops and Siachen Glacier 1984
India’s nuclear test in 1974 generated great uncertainty in Pakistan and is generally acknowledged to have been the impetus for Pakistan’s nuclear weapons development program. In 1983, the Pakistani and Indian governments accused each other of aiding separatists in their respective countries, i.e., Sikhs in India’s Punjab state and Sindhis in Pakistan’s Sindh province. In April 1984, tensions erupted after troops were deployed to the Siachen Glacier, a high-altitude desolate area close to the China border left undemarcated by the cease-fire agreement (Karachi Agreement) signed by Pakistan and India in 1949.
Tensions diminished after Rajiv Gandhi became Prime Minister in November 1984 and after a group of Sikh hijackers was brought to trial by Pakistan in March 1985. In December 1985, President Zia and Prime Minister Gandhi pledged not to attack each other’s nuclear facilities. In early 1986, the Indian and Pakistani governments began high-level talks to resolve the Siachen Glacier border dispute and to improve trade.
Kashmir Insurgency 1990
Bilateral tensions increased in early 1990, when Kashmiri militants began a compaign of violence against Indian Government authority in Jammu and Kashmir. Subsequent high-level bilateral meetings relieved the tensions between India and Pakistan, but relations worsened again after the destruction of the Ayodhya Masjid by Hindu extremists in December 1992 and terrorists bombings in Bombay in March 1993. Talks between the Foreign Secretaries of both countries in January 1994 resulted in deadlock.
Diplomatic Push 1996-97
In the last several years, the Indo-Pakistani relationship has veered sharply between rapprochement and conflict. After taking office in February 1997, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif moved to resume official dialogue with India. A number of meetings at the foreign secretary and Prime Ministerial level took place with positive atmospherics but little concrete progress. In a speech at the UN, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif offered to open talks on a non-aggression pact with India, proposing that both nations strike a deal to restrain their nuclear and missile capabilities.
Nuclear Rivalry 1998
The arms race between the rivals escalated dramatically in the 1990s. In May 1998, India conducted underground nuclear tests in the western desert state of Rajasthan near the border with Pakistan. In response, Pakistan conducted six tests in Balochistan. In the same year, Pakistan test its longest range missile, the 1,500 km (932 mile) Ghauri missile, named after the 12th Century Muslim warrior who conquered part of India. Both sides were heavily criticized by the international community for the tests as fears of a nuclear confrontation grew.
The United States ordered sanctions against both countries, freezing more than $20bn of aid, loans and trade. Japan ordered a block on about $1bn of aid loans. Several European countries followed suit, and the G-8 governments imposed a ban on non-humanitarian loans to India and Pakistan. The UN Security Council condemned India and Pakistan for carrying out nuclear tests and urged the two nations to stop all nuclear weapons programmes.
Indian Prime Minister Atal Vajpayee Visit to Pakistan 1999
The relationship improved markedly when Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee traveled to Lahore for a summit with Sharif in February 1999. There was considerable hope that the meeting could lead to a breakthrough. They signed the Lahore accord pledging again to “intensify their efforts to resolve all issues, including the issue of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Kargil Conflict 1999
Unfortunately, in May 1999 India launched air strikes against Pakistani backed forces that had infiltrated into the mountains in Indian-administrated Kashmir, north of Kargil. Pakistan responded by occupying positions on the Indian side of the Line of Control in the remote, mountainous area of Kashmir near Kargil threatening the ability of India to supply its forces on Siachen Glacier. By early summer, serious fighting flared in the Kargil sector. The infiltrators withdrew following a meeting between Prime Minister Sharif and President Bill Clinton in July. Relations between India nad Pakistan have since been particularly strained, especially since the October 12, 1999 coup in Islamabad.
The Brink of War 2001
Tension along the ceasefire lined continued. The worst fighting for more than a year broke out in October as India, which continued to condemn Pakistan for cross-border terrorism, started shelling Pakistani military positions. October saw a devastating attack on the Kashmiri assembly in Srinagar in which 38 people were killed. After the attack, the Chief Minister of Indian-administrated Kashmir, Farooque Abdullah called on Indian Government to launch a war against militant training camps across the border in Pakistan.
On 13th December, an armed attack on the Indian Parliament in Delhi left 14 people dead. India again blamed Pakistani-backed Kashmiri militants. The attack led to a dramatic build-up of troops along the Indo-Pakistan border, military exchanges and raised fears of a wider conflict. Rail and bus services between the two countries were also blocked.
Relaxation of Tension 2003
A relaxation of tension began in 2003, when then Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee called for a dialogue. Rail and bus services between the two countries resumed, and the two countries agreed to a ceasefire in Kashmir.
Summit Talks 2004
Twelfth SAARC Summit was held in Islamabad in January 2004. On this occasion President Parvez Musharraf met Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on 5th January 2004. In this summit talk India and Pakistan resumed comprehensive discussions with an agenda the included the Kashmir problem, confidence-building measures, and ways to provide security against terrorism.
No War Pact 2004
These comprehensive consultations have steadily built up trust, resulting in agreements to continue the suspension of nuclear tests, to give prior notification of missile tests, and to seek a peaceful resolution of the Kashmir problem. On June 20, 2004, both countries signed “No War Pact” and agreed to extend a nuclear testing ban and to set up a hotline between their foreign secretaries aimed at preventing misunderstandings that might lead to a nuclear war.
Musharraf’s Unofficial Visit to India 2005
In April 2005 President Parvez Musharraf and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh agreed on various new confidence-building measures between the two nations. Their talks, held during Mr. Musharraf’s unofficial visit to India on April 17, produced agreement, for example, on the passage of trucks for commercial purposes over Kashmir’s Line of Control, or ceasefire line. This is expected to greatly help ease tensions between the countries.
The improvement of relations between India and Pakistan still involves uncertain factors such as the activities of Islamic extremists, but efforts should be stepped up so that the latest summit can serve as a favorable tail wind for accelerating the thaw between the two nations.
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