Description: Indian aerial forces launched a barrage of attacks on territories within the Pakistani administered Kashmir and directly into Pakistan’s Punjab province, killing at least 26 and injuring another 38 people in a military operation codenamed Sindoor. Pakistan claimed the country retaliated the attacks and downed at least 5 Indian fighter jets along the heavily militarized Line of Control (LOC) which splits the Indian and Pakistani administered parts of the Kashmir province. Indian military officials have stated the air force targeted terrorist strongholds which pertained to the Resistance Front, the group, which was behind the Pahalgam attacks on 22 Apr, as well as other terrorist hot spots mostly associated with Lashkar e Taiba and the Jaish e Mohammed militant group. Pakistan’s foreign ministry has denounced the bombed locations weren’t used by terrorist groups and vowed strong retaliation and military response against India. Armed fighting also intensified in the LOC with the Pakistani military intensifying attacks on Indian fortified positions. The latest exchange represented the highest amplification of tensions between the countries in the past two decades, as officials from the US, China and the UN called for restraint from both sides.
Impact: India’s unilateral decision to directly attack Pakistan brings the archrivals in dangerously close warfare territory. The almost century – old territorial dispute over the Kashmir province saw the largest intensification of armed fighting and bilateral tensions in the last couple of decades as either side is yet to resort towards de-escalation and diplomatic resolution of the conflict. The Pahalgam attack most definitely precipitated the two countries towards colliding and trading blame, however, the underlying geopolitical motives entice both India and Pakistan towards amplification of military confrontations. India has adopted a differentiated approach towards building relations as they have open partnerships with Russia, the US and in some parts with China, while Pakistan is a crucial country for forwarding the Chinese Belt and Road geoeconomic and geostrategic initiative. The dispute encompasses indirect confrontation between China and the US as the Kashmir territorial issue is being used for almost a century as an artificially imploded conflict which depicted a battlefront of economic and political influence for forwarding global geopolitical interests. Larger military confrontations are expected in the short to mid-term period, as both countries would be internationally pressured to engage in ceasefire or peace negotiations most likely through a mediating country.