Pakistan and Indian International Conflict - Essay Example

Pakistan and Indian International Conflict Pakistan and India both gained independence from the British Empire in 1947 and the first action taken by their governments against each other took place that very year over the issue of Kashmir. Even though more than 60 years have passed since their independence, both countries have not managed to develop to their full potential simply because they are in a state of constant conflict. This fuels their need to have expensive military equipment and to maintain a large number of armed forces which can easily be considered a tremendous burden on their economies (BBC, 2003).

As described by CNN (1997) the countries have fought several wars over the disputed region of Kashmir that remains an unsolved matter between the two nations. The reason for this conflict comes from the partition of India and Pakistan of which Kashmir remains an unanswered question. At the time of partition, various states in India were given the option to join Pakistan, join India or to become independent. Muslim majority states with Muslim rulers predominantly opted to join Pakistan while Hindu majority states with Hindu rulers largely opted to join India (BBC, 2003).

Kashmir was a case where the population was largely Muslim yet the ruler of the state was a Hindu who opted for India. The people of the state asked the newly formed government of Pakistan for help and a war was setup between the two nations that was eventually stopped by the UN. While the UN was supposed to conduct a referendum in the region, India asserted its legal right over the state even though the region is still recognized as being disputed (Global Security, 2005). The strategic importance as well as the tourism value of the region makes it important for both countries (BBC, 2003).

It seems that there is no real cause for both nations to go to war since they have both committed time and again to find a reasonable solution to their problem. Further, their economies are being badly hurt by a continued conflict that has created instability in the region . India perhaps has more to loose from a war in economic terms since it is trying to show the world that it can be an economic giant. Pakistan has got more to lose in terms of territory since the Indian forces outnumber their forces 5 to 1 in many cases (Global Security, 2005).

Any third party intervention into the situation is also very unlikely since both nations are declared nuclear powers that have the capacity and the capability to start a nuclear war. Due to their close proximity, the danger of a nuclear war in the region makes the border a very volatile one (BBC, 2003). Further, it would seem to be in the interest of America as well as other weapons producing and exporting nations to keep these two countries close to war in order to sell them both more weapons while preventing an actual war itself.

It is easy to conclude therefore, that unless a solution is found by the warring countries themselves, it is unlikely that someone else is going to come from outside to solve the problems they are facing with each other. Word Count: 578Works CitedBBC. 2003, ‘India Pakistan Timeline’, [Online] Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/south_asia/2002/india_pakistan/timeline/1947.stmCNN. 1997, ‘Conflict between India, Pakistan runs deep’, [Online] Available at: http://edition.cnn.com/WORLD/9708/India97/shared/sibling.

rivalry/index.htmlGlobal Security. 2005, ‘India-Pakistan Conflict’, [Online] Available at: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/indo-pak.htm