A conflict of decades

India is once again treading an aggressive warpath. The indiscriminate and unprovoked firing on the Working Boundary and the irresponsible statements from the representatives of the Modi government are all against the norms of international law. It is this very hegemonic attitude of India that Pakistan has always protested. India seems ignorant of the fact that both the states are nuclear powers and any kind of tension or escalation of hostilities among the two would not only be detrimental to the peace of South Asia, but also to the stability of international peace. The world watches with alarm and weariness as there is no telling if and when the escalation may spiral out of control. India is always apprehensive of the "K" word in any kind of diplomatic interaction between the two states. Sushma Sawaraj, India's minister for external affairs has also made it clear that Kashmir is a "bilateral issue" between India and Pakistan and there is no place for a third party like the Hurriyat in the dialogue. India objected to Pakistan's decision to meet the Kashmiri leadership twice, coincidentally both times in the month of August in 2014 and 2015. However, from Pakistan's point of view, Kashmir is the real core issue and relations cannot be improved without the solution of this longstanding issue. The trust deficit between India and Pakistan is there since both the nations gained independence. Trust deficit cannot vanish in thin air especially when the world's largest democracy behaves like a dictator.
Recently there was cross-border firing between India and Pakistan which left some nine people dead which only continues the previous border skirmishes. Both sides blame each other and as usual there is a set of accusations from both sides of resorting to unprovoked firing and violating the ceasefire. The claims of both sides are never verified and the only thing which is tragic is the death toll suffered by the innocent civilians. But if we keep track of Modi government's hostile statements and attitude towards the peace and friendly initiative of the Nawaz government, India's claim can be negated. India has violated ceasefire for 143 times over the past three months in which 24 people have been killed so far. There has also been incidents where Indian spy agency RAW's involvement has been found in fanning terrorism on Pakistani soil.
The fact is that Indo-Pakistan relations have always remained complex. There are limited people to people contacts that may help to overcome the negative perception prevailing on both sides. It is said that "you can change history but not geography". Keeping that in mind, it is really dangerous to tread the conflict path instead of adopting the doctrine of "live and letting live" peacefully. In the current volatile situation, the political leadership of both the countries should show political will to resolve the outstanding issues. The Modi government is hell bent on pursuing an aggressive policy towards Pakistan and it is against India itself. Prime Minister Modi should rethink his policy regarding Pakistan; his "act tough" policy with Pakistan is definitely not working.
India desperately wants to cut off the trade corridor between China and Pakistan through the CPEC. Soon India will have to realise that the only cheapest and shortest route towards the Central Asian states is through Pakistan and it would have to use it at some time for its own good. There are other compelling reasons why India should pro-actively engage with Pakistan. First, a tension-free relationship with Pakistan would help India to consolidate its nationhood, the bonding of which is secularism. Second, the issue of terrorism can be effectively tackled only in cooperation with Pakistan and not in confrontation with it. Third, if India claims to play a role in international affairs, it should not get dragged down by undue quarrels with Pakistan and by igniting state terrorism on the helpless people of Kashmir.
At this point it seems that India wants to have a limited war with Pakistan to subdue it. But it has failed to comprehend that a small war can escalate to nuclear war and that would not only be disastrous for the region but also for the whole world. Besides a nuclear war is the last thing that the international community wants at this time. If India strikes, Pakistan Army, being one of the finest armies of the world, will retaliate with its full might to defend Pakistan. It maybe that the current war jingoism is linked to the remembrance of 1965 war, but it must be kept in mind that fifty years ago there were no nuclear weapons and it only led out to death and destruction. Therefore, war must be avoided through diplomacy. Pakistan would have to activate its diplomatic machinery at a fast pace to counter the Indian campaign in an effective manner. Pakistan should also actively engage the international community to deter India from its current aggression and present a strong case on its behalf, to bring India on the negotiating table for the resolution of all outstanding issues.
No one has any delusions that the longstanding issues on both sides would be resolved overnight or in a few meetings. Formal resumption of multi-dimensional talks could help both sides control unnecessary paranoia while renewing the opportunity to understand each other. But the only opportunity for that in sight is when the two sides can meet on UN General Assembly sidelines. Somehow, even that seems a far-fetched possibility. Back-channel diplomacy can work too. But it is in the interest of both sides to do away with the war hysteria and to let things cool off.
Like India, Pakistan too has to realise that only dialogue and reconciliation is the way forward. Only the willingness to engage in dialogue can open all channels of further communication for conflict resolution, bilateral trade, people-to-people contacts and peace.