Region 
 

Region

The Opportunity

There was an air of pleasant surprise when a ceasefire was announced at the LoC between India and Pakistan. It now depends on how the two countries build on peace and work towards prosperity in the region.

By Ali Asad | April 2021

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The two significant nuclear rivals in South Asia, Pakistan and India have vowed to carry out the 2003 ceasefire agreement, despite ignoring all the factors which were a bone of contention between the two neighbours. The relationship between the two rivals has always been known for its complexity and sharpness. However there are times when amazements of a certain have emerged, leaving the whole world surprised. This new and unexpected stance taken by the two militaries to respect the 2003 truce along the LoC is unquestionably bewildering, considering the brusqueness that has stamped these relations.

The understanding between Pakistan and India rose from the dust when military generals on both sides turned the tables down and released statements which sought to ease the tension. Two years prior to this date, both nuclear opponents were about to start a major world conflict when Indian aircraft entered Pakistani territory and shot down. The latest ceasefire is like a cool breeze. Strains between the two atomic rivals failed to ease after 19 Indian soldiers were killed in Indian-occupied Kashmir by extremists.

moeed-w-yusufKashmir has always been a cause of discord between the two countries. Both claim it in full but own only some of its parts. Since 1947, India and Pakistan have come face to face on the issue three times – in 1948, 1965 and 1971. Some Kashmiri militant groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been battling against Indian standards for autonomy or for merging with the Pakistan. As per a few common freedom and liberties associations, a huge number of individuals have purportedly been executed in since 1989. In the Siachen glacier in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani soldiers have battled since 1984. A truce became effective in 2003 under foreign pressure.

The US State Department has congratulated both countries for their combined efforts to improve communication between both sides. Washington has urged Islamabad and New Delhi to hold direct talks on Kashmir and figure out the best possible solution for this very existential conflict.

It is hard to say in solid terms whether this improvement is the aftereffect of respective backchannel contacts and diplomacy among Pakistan and India, or whether the US has ‘poked’ the two sides to attempt to determine their disparities.

Despite the driving force, the way that the two sides are talking as opposed to the previous jingoism, portrays the need for change in the region, particularly if the pugnacity that was emanating from New Delhi is recalled.

However nobody ought to be under the impression that the harshness on both sides will mysteriously vanish. Peacebuilding is an ongoing and difficult process but not impossible. When the relationship is just about as perplexing as that between Pakistan and India, things will are more likely to worsen rather than improve. If the US is determined about establishing harmony in South Asia, it should obviously tell New Delhi that it should develop a relationship with Pakistan on equal grounds.

On both sides, it is impossible to reach a decision independently. Both fault the other for hostilities and tit-for-tat firing and shelling, which directly affects the people living on both sides of the Line of Control. However, it is essentially difficult to autonomously confirm these clashing cases as the both militaries control LoC from their own sides.

The change in tactics looks good for those living along the LoC, as they have sacrificed their lives for Indian hostility and the response from the Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The ceasefire is important for those Kashmiris living directly in the line of fire. But, does this ceasefire have the capacity to stay? New Delhi, if it really wants to live in harmony with Pakistan, should make attempts to start a serious interaction. Trust-building is a vital factor here as it will cool political temperatures cools and there will be some light at the end of the tunnel.

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