India and Pakistan: The Past, Present and Future
Following independence from British rule in 1947, the infamous partition came soon after, dividing British India into two independent states, India and Pakistan. This metamorphic event defined most visits to my great-grandmother’s house, as she tried to explain to little me how she was Indian and I was not. Kashmir was a region between the two newly formed independent states; I distinctly remember a book simply titled ‘Kashmir’ that was always on my great grandmother’s bedside table, containing captioned images of its beautiful lakes, lush meadows and jaw-dropping mountains.
Image / Jack Zalium
Under the partition plan, Kashmir was free to accede to either state, but its local ruler decided to join India after Indian forces had helped them fend off a tribal Pakistani invasion. Since then, two out of the three wars between India and Pakistan have been over this 86,000 square mile region. In 1949, the UN left Kashmir divided between India and Pakistan, with the promise of a vote enabling people to decide which state they wanted to be a part of. To this day, the vote has not been held.
“Two out of the three wars between India and Pakistan have been over this 86,000 square mile region.”
Kashmir is fought over for many reasons. Other than its fruitful lands, the flow of water from the region has, for 65 years, been shared between the two countries. But Modi, India’s Prime Minister, remarked recently that ‘India’s water will flow for India’s benefit, it will be conserved for India’s benefit, and it will be used for India’s progress”. Additionally, religion plays an important role. With Kashmir being more than 60% Muslim, it is the only state in India with a Muslim, rather than Hindu, majority. Therefore some believe a Muslim-majority region should be part of a Muslim-majority country: Pakistan.
Map of Kashmir / Wikimedia Commons
The history of conflict between the two countries has never really been solved, so on 22 April when a Pakistani militant attack killed tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, the Indian defence ministry retaliated with force, firing missiles despite the Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif denying government involvement in the militant attack. Pakistan refutes the claim that India is targeting ‘terrorist infrastructure’, and instead says the strikes are unprovoked; they have replied with air force defence, saying they have shot down 5 Indian aircraft and a drone.
What is especially terrifying about this situation for me is the potential for nuclear warfare; both countries are nuclear powers. In the 1950s, India established its nuclear programme with help from the US and Canada, and actually exploited a loophole in non-proliferation agreements when it began reprocessing spent fuel into plutonium in the 60s, a method of producing fissile material for a nuclear weapon. In 1972, a Pakistani mechanic began working for a nuclear engineering consulting firm in Amsterdam, where he gained access to key intelligence for the production of these weapons.
The world last feared nuclear conflict between the countries in 1999 when Pakistani soldiers seized several Himalayan peaks on the Indian side, where India responded with aerial bombardments. The US stepped in to mediate then, ending the fighting. Now, India controls around 172 nuclear weapons, while Pakistan has approximately 170.
Despite Modi’s allyship with the Trump administration, we have seen how US isolationism has threatened negotiations towards peace. The US’s initial reaction was one of ambivalence - with Vice President Vance telling Fox News, “What we can do is try to encourage these folks to de-escalate a little bit, but we’re not going to get involved in the middle of war that’s fundamentally none of our business”. While a ceasefire has now been reached, with US intervention playing a key role, both sides have stil accused each other of violating the deal. It is hard to see this peace as secure; the performances of diplomatic and military leadership have been difficult to trust.
Trump and Modi shaking hands / Wikimedia Commons
Whilst a UN-brokered ceasefire line, the Line of Control, now divides the region, the threat still lingers in the back of many minds, even as faraway British-Pakistanis worry about their family back home. Living in a border town caught in the crossfire of conflict, a family heard a large explosion close to their house, and whilst trying to escape to a safer place, twelve year old twins Zain and Zoya were caught in a blast. Their uncle, Pathan tells The Independent, “They came into this world together, and they died together.”
“It's stories like these that punctuate the futility of war. After 80 years of both sides failing to find, or even attempt peace, the conflict seems endless.”
It's stories like these that punctuate the futility of war. After 80 years of both sides failing to find, or even attempt peace, the conflict seems endless. I’m reminded of my own brother who is a similar age to Zain and Zoya, and how it is always the innocent and guiltless that suffer the most in matters of land, money and power. In the past, foreign intervention has proven successful in stopping the conflict, even if only temporarily. If the situation escalates further we should call for politicians to make greater efforts to cool the situation. It's especially important for Indians and Pakistanis in the UK to stand united against all violence, and not give into inflammatory messages painting one country as superior to the other.