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The identity politics as part of a Hindutva strategy has played crucial role in worsening Indo-Pak relations by hindering success of any bilateral peace process. Historically, India and Pakistan have involved in various peace processes but all to no avail. This research design follows exploratory and correlational approaches. The results are extrapolated by analyzing the quantitative and qualitative data obtained for the study. Using social constructivism as a theoretical framework, the study examines how ideational factors, propagated by Hindutva through the creation of 'us versus them' narratives or 'myths' constructing threats to Hindus, proved to be instrumental in forging a negative image of Pakistan which is intricately woven around the constructed perception of its dominant religion, Islam, and its adherents i.e., Muslims. The study reveals that the association of negative identities like those of terrorists and enemies with Pakistan as part of Hindutva agenda, has negatively affected India-Pakistan peace-processes. However, it suggests that adopting a multifaceted approach to peace can significantly contribute to the success of bilateral peace process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trade among neighboring nations holds significant economic importance, influencing the socio-economic development of countries. India and Pakistan represent one of the most persistent conflicts in contemporary international relations. The continuation of this conflict poses significant challenges to the establishment and nurturing of robust economic ties between the two nations. Deep-rooted historical animosity between neighboring nations often adversely affects regional economic relations, leading to noticeable disruption and disparities in trade patterns. This study focuses on examining the impact of geopolitical dynamics on trade relations between India and Pakistan. Bilateral trade relations between the two countries have been examined in three distinct time periods: 1965–2011, 2011–2016, and 2016 onwards. The findings revealed that whenever there were hostile relations between the two countries, their trade relations were also adversely affected. Furthermore, it is recommended that emphasizing the importance of peaceful relations is crucial for fostering bilateral trade between the two countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan continues to face multiple sources of internal and external conflicts. Its all-powerful military is engaged in a subterranean battle to maintain its power. Economically, the country persisted in troubled waters as it has been for most of its recent history. In domestic politics, the failed experiment of a hybrid regime under Ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan forced the military to part ways with Mr Khan and install a coalition government of 13 political parties through a no-confidence vote in parliament in April 2022. Mr Khan's political party is facing a severe crackdown in Pakistan after he accused the powerful military of his ouster from power. At the regional level, a favourable outcome in Afghanistan in the shape of the Taliban's takeover has not yielded any significant positive results for Pakistan. After concluding the Afghan conflict on a favourable note, paradoxically, the military establishment hints at a desire to shift away from geo-security to geo-economics in its foreign policy goals. At the extra-regional level, the military is walking a tightrope to balance its ties between the USA and China to offset any adverse consequences arising from its strategic partnerships with China over China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). In this article, we explain a series of issues confronting Pakistan currently—including a deep economic crisis, political paralysis, and a resurgent terror threat—focusing on the military's ambitions in the region and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two nuclear-armed states of South Asia, India and Pakistan, besides being arch-rivals face common non-traditional security challenges. A recent example indicates that, despite having differences, they cooperated to successfully deal with the locust upsurge of 2019–2020. This study looks at why and how they arrived at joint efforts to thwart this non-traditional security threat. To set the context for this, it also explores the phases of the locust cycle and the reason why it constitutes a potential threat to the food security of both India and Pakistan. The study finds that the chances of cooperation between hostile states may increase if there are mutual threats in the non-traditional security realm. It further concludes that the chances of cooperation between the belligerent states increase if they are part of regional and international mechanisms to deal with the threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article attempts a comparative study of Khushwant Singh's Train to Pakistan and the select stories of Saadat Hasan Manto, written against the backdrop of the India-Pakistan partition of 1947 which traumatized and affected millions of people. The study looks into the fictitious nature of the brand-new identity taken up by people and the manner in which they acted under the influence of radical nationalism and extremism. It unravels the consequences of partition madness upon women and children as they became the easiest targets of the fanatics. It intends to identify the similarities and dissimilarities between both writers in respect of their portrayal of the refugee crisis, partition riots, communal madness as reflected in their works, and their reactions towards the religious division of India. The adopted method of this study is a comparative study in which textual analysis involving close reading of the select texts is utilized, taking postcolonialism and feminism into account. The analysis is further substantiated with the data taken from secondary sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May 1998, the two most important South Asian states overtly conducted their nuclear tests and thus marked the beginning of an era of nuclearisation in the sub-continent. This overt nuclearisation within the region led to a sense of optimism among scholars and policymakers which almost completely ruled out the possibility of an all-out war between India and Pakistan. However, exactly after a year the Kargil War erupts between India and Pakistan- a war that was fought between two 'nuclear power states' and since then has completely changed the equation and definition of 'warfare' between the two most important and strategically volatile states of South Asia. The year 2023 marks the 24th anniversary of the Kargil War, and the present paper makes an attempt to apprise the lesson that both India and Pakistan have learnt in the post Kargil War era, with specific reference to the techniques and modus operandi of warfare. Questioning the very definition of 'war' as developed during the Cold War era, this paper will try to look into pertinent issues how warfare between India and Pakistan has undergone a qualitative change in the post-nuclearisation phase. A closer scrutiny of the nature of war that took place in Kargil points to the fact that there exists a space below the nuclear threshold of both India and Pakistan that can be exploited for conducting a 'Limited War'- a theoretical prism that refutes the claim made by nuclear pessimists that any war between new nuclear nations will escalate to a nuclear level. Using qualitative methodology as its framework, based on the secondary literature and insights of interviews of policy analyst and experts the paper wishes to contribute a new debate within the discourse of India-Pakistan Relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India-Pakistan relations are at an inflection point with India's dramatic revocation of Kashmir's autonomy and its desired objective to transform the nature of the Kashmir conflict from a "bilateral" (involving Pakistan) to a "unilateral" status (excluding Pakistan). Pakistan, on the other hand, has embarked on a diplomatic offensive making the case against India's majoritarian politics in Kashmir as detrimental not only to the Kashmiris but also to the strategic stability between the two rivals. This article reasons that India's and Pakistan's dominant zero-sum strategies—premised on winning while ensuring the other's loss—are least likely to come to fruition. Given the present nature of ties, the way forward is for the two states to engage in a minimalist framework where mutual interests, as opposed to dominant positions, are put forth as a basis for engagement. Second, engagement more than agreement should be the short- to medium-term goal. Finally, any talk during this time on freezing the Kashmir conflict is least likely to bring any long-term dividends for peace and stability between the two regional adversaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study highlights the changing dimensions of power in the Indo-Pacific region. A paradigm shift in India's maritime strategy is shaping the balance of power in the region. The regional balance has shifted in favor of India due to the new Indo-Pacific policy of the United States. A major shift in US policy has strengthened India's maritime security and blue economy in the region. However, India's maritime strategy has far-reaching implications for Pakistan's security and economy. This article examines India's maritime strategy in the 21st century and the development of partnerships with Western powers to contain China in the region. The article analyzes the change in India's maritime strategy and the expansion of its role in the Indo-Pacific region due to the availability of new technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The change of perception and opinion of population is dangerous for the security of state. In this way, contemporary propaganda alters public perception through deception employing new technology, resulting in a widespread occurrence in region. Given the public's lack of trust in political leaders and official institutions, propaganda is active and aggressive in the internet environment. So, Propaganda has a detrimental impact on the collective mindset (Asmolov, 2019). These sentiments of mistrust, brittleness, and instability shape the minds of the people, which would have a negative impact on regional peace and stability. Due to the rise of opinion media models, divisions are broadening inside states. Further, disinformation and fake news in cyberspace made things worse. In today's international politics, the media has become an important source of propaganda. Furthermore, social media, in particular, has played a significant role in propagating fake news. India has always employed propaganda to de-stable her opponent while gaining support, loyalty, and trust from their own people. The aim of this article is to explain the Indian propaganda against Pakistan. The study explores the political implications of Indian propaganda on Pakistan. The qualitative research technique is used to collect data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rivalry is the unfinished agenda of decolonisation. This research utilises Kenneth Waltz's three images of war, i.e., individual, state, and systemic level, for analysing a detailed study of the major wars between India and Pakistan. Since their liberation from British rule, Indo-Pak relations have been fraught. Both countries have been at odds multiple times, causing South Asia to become unstable. The addition of nuclear weapons to the region has introduced a new aspect to the Indo-Pak conflict, escalating concerns of a potential nuclear confrontation that could destroy all civilisation. Actors in the two nations and foreign strategists have worked to identify the underlying roots of the conflict between these two arch-rivals. Few, however, have attempted to see the Indo-Pak conflict via Kenneth Waltz's three images of war. This article examines numerous wars between India and Pakistan via Waltz's lens, trying to pave the path ahead to avoid an all-out war between two tired neighbours. The article employs a qualitative research method. It conducts historical research to uncover events and links from the past that have ramifications up to the present day. Furthermore, the article attempts to deduce the causes of Indo-Pak wars from Waltz's three images of war and forecast the likelihood of future conflict between India and Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTThe geopolitical situation in South Asia is witnessing entangled trends, which are reflected as chronic India-Pakistan confrontation, the frigid China-India relationship and the increasing US-China competition. China doesn’t want to be involved in the India-Pakistan confrontation, but it’s an undeniable fact that the China factor is shaping India-Pakistan interaction to some extent. Though the United States is an extra-regional power, it has a long history of being involved in regional affairs. Considering China, India and Pakistan all possess nuclear weapons, it’s extremely important to analyze the geopolitical trends and implications for the nuclear chain. This paper argues that the United States has been focusing on strategic competition against China, and the bilateral relationship will face fierce challenges before reaching new balance. The China-India relationship is becoming competitive and volatile, and the old framework of stabilizing bilateral relations is disintegrating. The conflicting ideology of nation-building, the extremely contradicted security perception, and the battle for geostrategic advantage in the region all contribute to India-Pakistan confrontation. Though nuclear weapons, functioning as a strategic deterrence tool, will curtail concerning parties from large-scale war, and China strongly advocates for a common and cooperative security concept, the geopolitical entanglement will have serious impact on the regional nuclear situation. This paper also gives recommendations for managing this interaction. All concerned parties should strive to overcome the security dilemma and maintain peace and stability in this region by strengthening confidence-building measures, conducting nuclear issue dialogues and improving crisis management mechanisms.

This paper examines the interstate reconciliation between India and Pakistan after the shock of Sino-Indian War of 1962. The post-1962 war political-security equations, particularly at the regional level, gave rise to a situation that necessitated India's reconciliatory negotiations with Pakistan over Kashmir. Though the rival parties engaged in a six-round political dialogue, the process ended up in a deadlock followed by spirals of armed clashes that culminated in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. The paper shows that this reconciliation process proved counterproductive because it was imposed from outside and the principal parties, in a window-driven haste and under the political-strategic constraints, could not mutually agree on to reconcile their political differences and settle the territorial dispute over Kashmir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jammu and Kashmir has been experiencing border conflict since the partition of India (1947) into two sovereign states (India and Pakistan). Four wars have been fought between them and still the issue has not been resolved. Uncertain firing, the continuous threat to life, unsettled life, and restricted living conditions affects the quality of life of the common people living in villages near the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC). The number of ceasefire violations in 2020 was the highest number of ceasefire violations in the past 16 years. People on both sides are the worst sufferers of the military aggression between the nations. Children living in such a volatile context lack the required developmental opportunities and their future is highly jeopardized. A serious commitment to the peacebuilding and reconciliation process is the way forward. Reconciliation processes like the Tashkent Declaration (1966), the Shimla Agreement (1972), and the Peace Bus service (1999) have been initiated but could not sustain peace for a longer period. This paper highlights the reconciliation process between the two countries and the need for a sustainable reconciliation initiative to secure the future of coming generations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to explicate the interpretative analysis of Kashmir dispute. The epistemological shift in the global politics requires the appreciation of endogenous and exogenous factors. The Kashmir conflict is a perpetual strand between India-Pakistan which re-assert the conflictual nature of political relations. Both the states employ respective ideational framework to legitimise their claim to achieve the respective political objectives. Pakistan espouses the ideational factors grounded on Two-Nation Theory to socially construct their narrative regarding the Kashmir dispute. In India, the differential identity of INC and BJP in terms of secular and ethno-nationalism respectively, shape the contemporary proclamation over the dispute territory. The change in the culture of anarchy from Hobbesian to Kantian seems distant after the revocation of the special status of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) by the BJP government. The constructive intervention of international society and regional organisations would be required to safeguard the geo-political and geo-economic interests of the regional states. Followed by empirical analysis, the way forward and future recommendations would be delineated to critically reconnoitre the discursive strategies employed by political leaders for understanding the non-material factors which shape the social reality of India-Pakistan relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current article aims to analyse the effectiveness of the conversion of the Siachen Glacier into a peace park on India–Pakistan relations. It further investigates how the peace park can build mutual understanding leading to cooperation and peace between the two countries. The article presents the conceptual framework for adequate supervision of the Siachen Glacier jointly by India and Pakistan to mitigate the existing tensions and conflicts through tourism within the context of the tourism–peace nexus and peace park concept. The Siachen Peace Park proposition offers an amazing way out for the policymakers to diffuse tensions between the military establishments of India and Pakistan. Both the nations have been losing the lives of their soldiers among the snow-capped peaks not due to any gunfight but mainly because of climatic extremities and frostbite. The suggestion of the Siachen Peace Park has been explicated with the help of a four-stage peace park conversion model conceived by the authors, which gives a conceptual understanding of the outcomes of this Peace Park for both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No other issue has influenced the India–Pakistan relationship more adversely than the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. To understand the discourse surrounding the dispute, and how it has evolved within the foreign policies of both countries, this research undertakes a critical discourse analysis of both countries' official statements at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) between 1948 and 2020. The findings of this study are crucial to not only understanding how the two states have been internationalizing the Kashmir dispute but also what lessons can be learned from the past as both countries attempt to slowly reengage with one another. Our analysis points to the fact that both India and Pakistan's stances on the Kashmir dispute, despite their varying phases throughout the conflict, have essentially remained the same. We argue that, despite seeming to have converged toward some form of resolution during the first decade of the twenty-first century, the current context of India–Pakistan relations presents a worsening trajectory that has not been witnessed since their last major war in 1971. In highlighting the cyclical, almost scripted nature of this debate, this paper attempts to suggest ways to break free from age-old tropes and help pave the way toward more meaningful ways to redefine the issue in light of a radically altered geo-political context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the contested region of Kashmir and investigates how the nation-building project that accompanied the partition of the South Asian subcontinent, along with the creation of the ceasefire line that divided the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan, shaped the question of belonging for the majority of its Muslim inhabitants, especially from the 1940s to the 1960s. It reveals the bureaucratic procedures put in place by the new nation-states, both driven by the question of self-determination pending in the United Nations and devoid of human considerations, made Kashmiris apprehensive about the motivations of both states. The article argues that Kashmiri belonging after partition did not seamlessly merge into the national identities of India or Pakistan. Instead, the anxieties of partition and structural challenges created by the arbitrary ceasefire line shaped Kashmir Muslim perceptions. Drawing from intercepted letters, pamphlets, and biographies, this article reveals the irrelevance of such artificial 'borders' in the Kashmiri psyche. In the process, it asserts that the Kashmiri demand for self-determination became intertwined with the desire for the reunification of the old princely state that would promote human-to-human contact, reopen old trade routes, and promote economic self-sufficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pakistan-India relations are mired in power politics making the two countries as rivals with competing identities and interests. By the logic of power politics, the two neighbouring countries survive in a condition of security dilemma and are locked in patterns of enduring rivalry, militarised geopolitics and antagonistic national security paradigms. Despite the enduring rivalry, the India-Pakistan relations are also marked by contexts of cooperation where the two sides have exhibited orderly relations and given way for negotiations. In order to give meaning to this oscillating state-to-state relationship, the present study looks into the variable of threat perception whether it is an objective phenomenon or a subjective phenomenon. To this end, the study aims at demystifying Pakistan-India relations from the lens of Stephen Walt's Balance of Threat Theory. By bringing up the ideational component of 'aggressive intentions' in his model, Walt conceptualises threat perception as a subjective phenomenon, which allows for an emancipatory framework of meaning and action that goes beyond the orthodox and regressive logic of traditional power politics to understand Pakistan-India relations. The present study argues that the state elites of the two countries can dial down their tensions by transforming their will and intentions towards more peaceful behaviours and outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the past decade, computer models have predicted that the physical impacts of a nuclear exchange between India and Pakistan, or even a single strike on a large city, would be devastating. The social, economic, and political impacts – although less well known – would also be crippling and would reverberate throughout the world. Efforts to use “Armageddon estimates” to scare the people of India and Pakistan have thus far not significantly reduced the risk of nuclear weapons use in this turbulent region. However, the increasing penetration of television and social media may give members of the public a better grasp of the scale of potential devastation. Combined with educational efforts targeted at media elites, increased public awareness of the consequences of a nuclear attack may help to reduce the pressure on political leaders to exercise the nuclear option. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article focuses on Lina Fruzzetti, a Brown University Professor at the anthropology department. It mentions how gender and racial equality, social justice, and the universality of citizenship had to be constantly cared for, protected, and affirmed. It also mentions conflicts and tensions between India and Pakistan only intensified with the "Hindu India" idealized by Narendra Modi and have now been aggravated by the Pakistani support of Taliban's control of Afghanistan.

This article attempts to answer the following question: Has nuclear deterrence maintained the peace between the regional nuclear rivals, Pakistan and India? To provide a well-balanced and nuanced answer that does justice to all sides of the argument, the author has dissected the vague term 'peace' and defined it in the context of the status quo within the subcontinent. Both India and Pakistan have been regional rivals since their inception, and the impact of their rivalry has had global consequences since both declared themselves to be nuclear states. In order to answer the question, the author has utilized theoretical perspectives to discern which theory best fits the thesis that it is not a question of whether or not peace has been maintained, but of how the nature of conflict between India and Pakistan has been irrevocably altered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1947 India was violently partitioned into the States of India and Pakistan. The political leaders behind this partition justified their decision based on the two-nation theory which had presented the two major religions namely Hindu and Muslim as two distinct civilizations that could not coexist. By marginalising and ignoring other important aspects of Indian society, and by magnifying only the religious aspect, they successfully created the metanarrative that would strengthen the 'imagined' border. Salman Rushdie, a postmodernist at heart, in Midnight's Children artistically brings the minute details of common Indian lives to the fore and thereby compels the readers to reanalyse the validity of the theory. This study, thus, by referring to the postmodern theory propounded by Jean François Lyotard, has tried to examine the legitimacy of two-nation theory in the light of the micronarratives portrayed in the Midnight's Children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After the partition of British India in 1947, many pilgrimage sites important for the Sikhs � followers of a medieval poet-mystic and philosopher Guru Nanak (1469-1539) � turned out to be at different sides of the India-Pakistani border. The towns of Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur (Guru Nanak�s birthplace, and residence for the last 18 years of his life, respectively) remained within Pakistani territory. Gurdwaras located there represent utmost pilgrimage destinations, the Sikhs� �Mecca and Medina�. Owing to Indian-Pakistani relations that have deteriorated throughout seven decades, pilgrimage to Kartarpur has been extremely difficult for India�s citizens. Nevertheless, in the late 1990s, official negotiations were launched concerning the possibility of setting up a visa-free pilgrimage corridor that would allow Indian Sikhs to easily reach the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara. The potential corridor was perceived by many as a channel for cultural cooperation and the embodiment of a zone of peace at the �line of mutual hatred� � as the India-Pakistan border has often been referred to. Negotiations received a new impetus when the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) party headed by Imran Khan came to power in 2018. On November 9, 2019, three days before Guru Nanak�s 550th birth anniversary, the Kartarpur corridor was inaugurated by the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan. This paper discusses the history of and the potential perspectives concerning the Kartarpur pilgrimage corridor drawing upon the concepts of borders as processes, sets of sociocultural practices, symbols, institutions, and networks that permanently adopt new meanings and functions.

The long-standing conflict in Jammu and Kashmir has resulted in the enforced disappearance of thousands of married men, which has left their wives with a new fractured identity as a 'half-widow'. Uncertain whether their husbands are dead or alive; their status is in limbo, leading to pervasive economic, social, legal and psychological problems. This article builds upon interviews with fourteen half-widows, aiming to gain an in-depth understanding of their lived experiences and the social trauma they face, including economic hardship, social stigmatisation and psychological trauma produced by their unresolved grief – which fluctuates between anguish over the possibility of death, and hope that their loved one will return. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article tests the Copenhagen School of security studies on the Siachen dispute between India and Pakistan. It argues that the demilitarization of the Siachen zone would need to be preceded by replacing state narratives of securitization with narratives of de-securitization or normal governance. Topics discussed include tenets of securitization, prerequisites of Copenhagen School, and elements and process of securitization.

After the partition of British India in 1947, many pilgrimage sites important for the Sikhs - followers of a medieval poet-mystic and philosopher Guru Nanak (1469-1539) - turned out to be at different sides of the Indian-Pakistani border. The towns of Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur (Guru Nanak's birthplace, and residence for the last 18 years of his life, respectively) remained within Pakistani territory. Gurdwaras located there represent utmost pilgrimage destinations, the Sikhs' 'Mecca and Medina'. Owing to Indian-Pakistani relations that have deteriorated throughout seven decades, pilgrimage to Kartarpur has been extremely difficult for India's citizens. Nevertheless, in the late 1990s, official negotiations were launched concerning the possibility of setting up a visa-free pilgrimage corridor that would allow Indian Sikhs to easily reach the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara. The potential corridor was perceived by many as a channel for cultural cooperation and the embodiment of a zone of peace at the 'line of mutual hatred' - as the India-Pakistan border has often been referred to. Negotiations received a new impetus when the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) party headed by Imran Khan came to power in 2018. On November 9, 2019, three days before Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary, the Kartarpur corridor was inaugurated by the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan. This paper discusses the history of and the potential perspectives concerning the Kartarpur pilgrimage corridor drawing upon the concepts of borders as processes, sets of sociocultural practices, symbols, institutions, and networks that permanently adopt new meanings and functions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this Commentary, I propose a bold, four-step plan which would address the question of self-determination for Kashmiris and hopefully resolve permanently the 70-year-old Kashmir issue which has poisoned Indo-Pakistan relations since Partition. Two important elements of this plan would be: first, the involvement of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group to assist Kashmiris, Pakistan and India in the mediation of the plan; and, second, the holding of four UN-supervised referenda which would be held simultaneously but counted separately: Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir; Kashmir valley; Jammu; and Ladakh. All Kashmiris would have three options: Join Pakistan, Join India or independence. As an incentive to India and Pakistan, the international community would deliver substantial economic assistance for the development of all parts of Kashmir. But as a quid pro quo for the economic aid package, there would have to be guaranteed free movement of people, capital and goods between all parts of Kashmir after the referenda, regardless as to which option had been chosen by the Kashmiris. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foreign policies of landlocked states have been a topic of interest for scholarship on international relations but the landlocked states in South Asia have received negligible attention. Due to their geographical realities, South Asian landlocked states that include Afghanistan, Bhutan and Nepal, depend on their neighbours for trade with the outside world. A range of factors place landlocked states in an unequal relationship with their coastal neighbours. While these factors include the superiority of coastal neighbours in terms of economy, population size, and military strength, we argue that their landlockedness plays a crucial role. To further investigate the role of landlockedness, this study compares the foreign policy decisions that guide India-Nepal and Afghanistan–Pakistan relations. Based on the assessment of historical, economic and geopolitical factors, we argue that India and Pakistan exploit their landlocked neighbours to achieve their national interests. Frustrated by the treatment of their coastal neighbours and the presence of new trade opportunities have compelled Afghanistan to use its closeness with India to counter over-dependence on Pakistan and Nepal has enhanced cooperation with China to overcome its reliance on India, thereby creating a new geopolitical dynamic within South Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Musharraf formula refers to the resolution formula of the Kashmir conflict which was reportedly agreed upon during the one-to-one backchannel dialogue between Mr. Tariq Aziz, the former civil servant and close aide of the then President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf and Mr.Satinder Lambah, a special envoy of the Prime Minister of India. We now know some of the details of this formula from the article of the American journalist, Steve Coll which he had published in New Yorker in March 2009 and the book of Mr.Khursheed Mahmud Kasuri, ‘Neither a Hawk nor a Dove’ which was published in 2015. Prior to this Mr.Musharraf and Mr.Kasuri had already claimed in their TV interviews and press talks that by March 2007 India and Pakistan were very close to resolving the Kashmir conflict. This paper takes the details of that non-paper agreement and tries to study what exactly that agreement holds for the future resolution of the Kashmir conflict. The basic understanding is whenever the Pakistani and the Indian governments will take up the negotiations on the Kashmir conflict in future, this agreement is bound to come up in the talks as a starting reference point. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully look at this agreement and discuss what it entails for the resolution of the Kashmir conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 divided the western Himalayan region of Baltistan in two parts. Being subject to internal colonization and nation-making by the two postcolonial nation states, the Balti community, like many other communities in the Himalayan region, has recently voiced demands for self-rule and experienced a cultural revival. The situation in Baltistan is here seen through a Zomia lens, focusing on what James Scott (2009) terms "jellyfish" strategies of the community's history, language, and culture to avoid being governed. This strategy allows for the community's escape from their rulers into a new, "virtual friction of terrain" in the form of ICT (information communications technology) and the internet. This article points out that South Asian minority communities like the Balti often find themselves suspended between demands of self-rule and a politics of development where they compete over access to the resources of the nation state. A preliminary history of connectivity in Baltistan is also included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hindi cinema has long been instrumental in defining the boundaries between the "self" and the "other," often by providing stereotypical representations of the other's different religious, linguistic or ethnic affiliations. It was often Pakistan that played the role of the other, especially in films dealing with international terrorism or war. However, certain recent films focus on the lives of everyday people and emphasize the possibility of redefining the India-Pakistan relationship by portraying cross-border friendship between everyday Indians and Pakistanis. In this article, I look at two such films, Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Khan, 2015) and Happy Bhag Jayegi (Aziz, 2016) and investigate whether these films provide a more nuanced portrayal of Pakistani characters than previous war or spy films. Throughout the paper I suggest that this is not the case and that these films, despite their wholesome message, employ a variety of stereotypes related to gender, religion, and nationality, which have been crucial in delineating the cultural boundaries of the Indian nation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Movies are a major source of entertainment for viewers, but they have also become an effective tool for furthering foreign policy objectives of the countries. Pakistan and India are neighboring countries having a long history of ups and downs in their bilateral relations since they got independence in 1947. The movies being produced on both sides of the border cannot stand aloof from portraying nature of the relationship between the two neighbors. The research focuses on how Bollywood, representing Indian film industry, and Lollywood, representing Pakistani movies, portray Pakistan-India relations. A content analysis of selected movies from both sides in a chosen sample was conducted, which explores that films are not very much neutral and always showcase foreign policies of their respective countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For greater control over space and power continuous struggle occurring between different human groups and/or nations ultimately leads to conflict and war. The present paper is concerned with the conflict between India and Pakistan which is the longest conflict in the World Geopolitics with no end in the foreseeable future. The main objective of this paper is to study the geographical bases of India-Pakistan conflict. The paper is based on historical, political, economic, strategic and media sources. In methodological sense it is descriptive as well as analytical in nature. As the study is concerned with geographic influences upon the changing power relationship between India and Pakistan, thus, it is of great significance in the geopolitical studies. The study reveals some geographical bases of the conflict between India and Pakistan such as territorial (border disputes), strategic (importance of Jammu and Kashmir as buffer region), resource (water and maritime water disputes), religion or ethnic (displacement of large scale population from India to Pakistan or vice-versa) geography (geographical unity of a state or a nation in terms of physical and human phenomenon; e.g. Akhanda Bharat) and proximity (close proximity to Jammu and Kashmir to India and Pakistan). In conclusion, the study confirms that the conflictuality between India and Pakistan is geography stimulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Southern Asia has seen multiple standoffs between three nuclear weapon states. The face-off has escalated into multiple wars between the three- China-India-Pakistan, adversaries and rival nations. The stability-instability paradox exposes the vulnerabilities and deterrence that actually leads to higher crises escalation in an unstable strategic environment. The unstable strategic environment in southern Asia brings up two important objectives of this study: (1) The understanding of the strategic environment and practice of deterrence in Southern Asia, and (2) India's context and vistas of deterrence within the region. The conceptual framework of study examines various assumptions and relevance of deterrence in strategic complexities of Southern Asia. The theoretical account will enable analyzing the interlinkage between deterrence and the strategic scenario in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India's revocation of Article 370, which had granted Jammu and Kashmir a special status, has changed the security and strategic dynamics in the relations between India and Pakistan. India claims it is an internal matter whereas Pakistan considers it an international issue and pushes to resolve it in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions. While Pakistan has limited international support, it still vows to go to any extent to secure 'freedom' for the Kashmiris. The visit of US President Donald Trump to India and the signing of a peace agreement between the US and the Taliban have added new dynamics to this conflict. This article discusses the aftermath of the revocation of Article 370, outlines Pakistan's claims from an historical perspective, analyses immediate measures initiated by Islamabad, points out the available options Pakistan may see at its disposal, and provides critical assessment of each. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]