Pakistan-India conflict. Assess the impact of the Pakistan-India conflict on peace and security in South Asia.
Introduction:
The two nuclear-powered countries of South Asia are India and Pakistan. The conflict between the two countries has been going on since birth. Therefore, the Pakistan -India conflict is not a new issue in international politics. Already there have been several wars between the two countries on various issues and now there is extreme hostility between these two neighboring countries.
Pakistan-India relations have never been stable due to deteriorating relations over Kashmir, the nuclear arms race, cross-border terrorism, etc. The role of these two countries is very important in establishing lasting peace in South Asia.
The heads of government of both countries have taken several initiatives for peace, but due to a lack of sincerity, success has not yet come. It has been proved that the root of the Pakistan-India enmity is the Kashmir issue, which is why the settlement of the Kashmir issue will be the main step in the Pak-India issue. Only then will peace return to South Asia.
Elements of Pakistan-India conflict:
In analyzing Pakistan-India relations, first, we need to know the elements of the Pakistan-India conflict. They are:
1. Nationality Based on Religion:
Before 1947, Indian National Congress leaders had dreamed of a united India. However, the Muslim leaders of the time were able to convince the British government that there would be no guarantee of Muslim rights and security in a united India. The British government considered this demand of the Muslims reasonable and accepted two separate independent states instead of a single independent India on the principle of religious majority.
Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru accepted this demand and recognized independent Pakistan in 1947, but continued to see the existence of Pakistan as a banner of Muslim nationality with an eye of envy. Based on the Two Nation Theory, the attitude of mistrust is created between the two states, and the conflict situation is created from the mistrust.
2. Kashmir Dispute:
Muslim-majority Kashmir was supposed to be a part of Pakistan based on bi-ethnicity, but India sent troops to annex Kashmir with India, fearing the Hindu King Harisingh of Kashmir. A total of 4 wars (in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999) took place between Pakistan and India over Kashmir.
Kashmiris were forced to take up arms as the views of the Kashmiri people were not valued. The Tashkent Agreement of 1960 and the Shimla Agreement of 1972 did not resolve the Kashmir issue, rather the conflict continued to escalate.
3. In the international context:
At the time of the birth of India and Pakistan, world politics was under the influence of two superpowers. India leaned towards Russia because of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s addiction to socialism.
On the other hand, Pakistan, being anti-India, developed military ties with the US instead of Russia. These two trends in the foreign policy of India and Pakistan made them rivals and increased the arms race between them under the umbrella and shelter of the superpowers.
4. The Rise of China and Chinese Foreign Policy:
Due to China’s war and conflict with India, China and Pakistan kept coming closer to each other. The Karakoram Highway was built to improve relations between China and Pakistan. The foundation of diplomatic relations between China and the United States was created through the mediation of Pakistan.
The stronger the relationship between China and Pakistan, the more contentious the relationship between Pakistan and India. India continues to feel that Pakistan is strengthening its defense preparations with China’s military cooperation and that it will be used against India.
5. Liberation War of Bangladesh:
India was directly in the independence war of Bangladesh held in 1971 assists Bangladesh. Pakistan and India got involved in extreme conflict. At one stage of the war, Pakistan was defeated in December 1971 when a joint command of India and Mukti Bahini was formed. Bangladesh’s War of Independence serves as a historical cause of the Pakistan-India conflict. Essentially, Pakistan-India efforts to acquire nuclear capabilities intensified after 1971 and the arms race increased.
6. Attempts to expand regional dominance:
India does not want to be a superpower but dreams of becoming a great military power. India annexed Sikkim to expand regional dominance and subjugated Kashmir by maneuvering. The Muslim state of Goa in South India annexed India, sent troops to Sri Lanka, gave peacekeeping status to Bangladesh, and built a huge navy, creating an arms race in the Indian Ocean. These efforts of India show a clear picture of the expansion of regional hegemony. As a neighbor of India, India’s fear arose in Pakistan and to counter it, Pakistan resorted to a massive arms race.
7. 650 km long Line of Control:
In the Line of Control region of Kargil region in Kashmir. The competition for supremacy pushed Pakistan-India into a conflict situation. India continues to say that Kashmiri fighters from Pakistan have crossed the Line of Control between the two countries in the glacial region located 1500 meters above the surface and are indulging in destructive activities in Indian-controlled Kashmir. India began massing large numbers of troops and weapons along the Line of Control.
Pakistan also made counter-preparations. As a result, in October 1999, a local war broke out between the soldiers of the two countries on the highest battlefield in the world. Although the war stopped under the pressure of the United States, the revenge between the two countries continued to increase. In the background of this war, the government was changed through a military coup in Pakistan.
8. Psychological conflict:
India and Pakistan’s arms race is one of the international relations and historical contexts that has given the two countries different dimensions. Mentally they live in two worlds. Mutual suspicion, mistrust, and hatred prevailed among them to an extreme degree. The Kashmir issue and the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War have completely separated the mental composition of the people of the two countries. The inevitable consequence is an arms race.
9. Combat Preparation:
Pakistan and India’s war preparations and arms acquisitions have exacerbated their conflict. The spirit of the arms race is acting as a cause of the arms race between them. While India is procuring tanks from Russia, Pakistan is procuring tanks from China.
While India is adding Agni, Prithvi, Trishul, Pinak, and Nag missiles, Pakistan is adding long, medium, and short-range missiles like Hafat, Ghori, Shaheen, and Ghaznavi to its defense sector. While the Western world has tolerated India’s nuclear program, Pakistan has opposed it becoming a nuclear power.
But Pakistan detonated the first nuclear bomb in the entire Muslim world defying the opposition of the Western world. Essentially, the military preparations of one countries are fueling the military preparations of other countries and creating an environment of the ongoing arms race. As India has not signed the CTBT agreement, Pakistan is also refusing to do so.
Introduction of Arms of India and Pakistan:
India and Pakistan gained independence from Britain in 1947. Immediately after independence, India and Pakistan became extremely tense over the Kashmir issue. Both countries engaged in an arms race over this dispute. The diplomatic relations between the two countries were strained over trivial incidents.
In 1965, the two countries went to war over a border dispute. During the Bangladesh War of Independence in 1971, India was directly involved in the war against Pakistan on the side of Bangladesh. After the two countries entered the war, arms production and imports doubled.
India conducted its first nuclear test in 1974 in the Rajasthan desert near the Pakistan border. After India’s nuclear tests, Pakistan also increased its arms purchases manifold to become a nuclear power. In 1998, Pakistan carried out 5 consecutive blasts in Balochistan’s Chagai desert in competition with India.
In 1999, Kargil Valley experienced the last warm weather. Due to the nuclear competition between the two countries today, nuclear bombs and border tensions are increasing, and above all, the punishment and stability of the subcontinent are under threat.
Recent Trends in India-Pakistan Relations:
In recent times the Pak-India situation has taken a new turn. The 1998 India-Pakistan nuclear bomb blasts, the two-month-long war in the Kargil region, the alleged Pakistani-backed attack on India’s Parliament building in 2000, incitement by Indian leaders to attack Pakistan during the US invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, efforts to improve relations between the two countries through the visit of the Indian Prime Minister to China in 2003.
This trend is marked by the organization of a large number of troops and arms gatherings by both countries in short-term preparations at the Pak-India border.
Even in 2002, India cut rail, road, and air links with Pakistan. Pakistan and India have entwined the Kashmir issue with their national pride and national politics in such a way that it is now impossible for them to back down.
The two countries will come forward with the spirit of dispute settlement through SAARC, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Commonwealth, and the United Nations or third-country mediation—the day the peace-loving people of the world are waiting for.
Nuclear test results:
India and Pakistan’s nuclear power has raised concerns for peace and stability in the subcontinent. Due to the nuclear competition between the two countries, the Western world imposed an economic blockade on these two countries. But it soon picked up again. Below are the results of India and Pakistan’s nuclear tests:
1. Geopolitical Impact:
India is a large country in the subcontinent and India’s border with Pakistan is an important geopolitical issue. The geopolitical significance of the Pak-India nuclear bomb blast is far-reaching. Pakistan is a bit weaker militarily but has achieved parity with India through nuclear explosions. Both countries attach equal importance to the Kashmir issue. Pakistan-India is an important part of the subcontinent geopolitically.
2. Balance of Power:
In the history of world politics, the politics of India and Pakistan is a politics of corruption and terror. which has not yet gained an institutional basis. Both countries’ nuclear ambitions and recalcitrant behavior by their rulers may make nuclear war inevitable after all. Pakistan-India becoming nuclear powers means tension between the two countries. The two countries are now engaged in a nuclear competition to maintain the balance of power.
3. Environmental disaster:
The atomic bomb brought massive destruction to the environment. The people of India do not know how a beautiful environment is brought to the brink of destruction due to nuclear. The curse of nuclear radiation on August 6 and August 9, 1945, is still being carried by the Japanese people. A small nuclear bomb detonates 5-6 kilometers of rubble. All animals within 2 km are wiped out and humans may experience eye irritation, vomiting, and blisters. As a result, the environmental disaster becomes extreme.
4. Peace Threatened:
The future of peace and security in South Asian countries is complex. Because of India and Pakistan’s mutual nuclear bomb competition and nuclear missile programs. The dominance of India and Pakistan in South Asia is increasing day by day. The principle of SAARC cannot be implemented due to the political turmoil of these two countries. SAARC has become ineffective and irrelevant and regional security stability is in question today. Pak-India arms race is leading to peace and security threats in the region.
Conclusion:
South Asian countries are one of the poorest regions in the world. Hundreds of millions of people in the region are being deprived of their basic rights by their state. As a result, suffering and inhuman life has become their daily companion. However, countries are spending billions of dollars to build nuclear bombs. Especially where the poverty of Pakistan-India is a daily companion, the two countries are engaged in a race for nuclear weapons. Peace and stability of the subcontinent will be greatly
threatened if this competitive spirit is not removed.