On Thursday (24), Pakistan announced retaliatory diplomatic measures against India in response to its neighbor’s actions following an attack on tourists in Kashmir, for which New Delhi blames Islamabad. This sudden escalation is the latest chapter in a standoff between the two nuclear powers since the most recent attack in the disputed region, on April 22nd, which killed 26 people.
“Any threat to Pakistan’s sovereignty and people’s security will be met with strict reciprocal measures,” warned the office of Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a statement after a meeting of the country’s Security Committee. In addition, the Pakistani government announced the suspension of “all visas issued to Indian nationals and the cancellation of them with immediate effect, except those issued to Sikh religious pilgrims.”
The latest chapter in the tension between the two Asian countries began on April 22nd when gunmen opened fire on tourists in Pahalgam, in an attack that has not been officially claimed. The Indian Foreign Office has accused Pakistan of “supporting cross-border terrorism”. However, the country claims India is accusing it “without evidence.”
A disputed region
Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since independence from the United Kingdom in 1947. Although the majority of its population – around 60% – is Muslim and would like to be part of Pakistan, the country only holds 37% of the territory. India administers 43% of the area and China has the remaining 20%. With disputed borders, the region is considered one of the most militarized on the planet.
During the Cold War, Pakistan was supported by the United States and India counted on the Soviet Union. Both countries started to invest in the war sector and today are in the select group of nine countries that have nuclear weapons, which reinforces tensions in the region.
In addition to the religious dispute, the region is considered strategic, because it includes in its area the sources of the main rivers of India and Pakistan – the Ganges and the Indus, respectively. On Wednesday, India announced the blocking of a water-sharing treaty between the two countries, the closure of the main land border post between the two neighbors and the reduction of its diplomatic team.
“The 1960 treaty on the Indus waters will be suspended with immediate effect until Pakistan reliably and irrevocably renounces its support for cross-border terrorism,” Misri told journalists in New Delhi.
In theory, the treaty shares water between the two countries, but it has caused many disputes. Pakistan fears that India will restrict its access to water, which would affect its agricultural production. Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif declared that “India is fighting a low-intensity war.”
“If the situation escalates, we are prepared. To protect our land, we will not give in to any international pressure,” he said at a press conference.
Violent repression
India is accused of violently repressing political demonstrations, fearing separatist insurgencies. Since Kashmir’s 1989 independence attempt, repression has intensified, resulting in the murder of more than 70,000 people over the last thirty years. The main victims are members of movements fighting for independence in the region.
On the Indian side, there is one soldier for six Kashmiris, totaling 100,000 soldiers. The region is the most militarized in the world. In August 2019, Narendra Modi’s far-right government revoked Kashmir’s constitutional autonomy, won in 1947, and even cut off Internet access.
