Doomed to Separate: A Neoclassical Realist Perspective of the Third India-Pakistan War of 1971 and Independence of Bangladesh.

Within South Asian politics and society, events of the year 1971 with the bloody military crackdown on East Pakistan, the third India-Pakistan war, and subsequent emergence of Bangladesh as an independent country, still hold a living and outsized presence. Most popular historical accounts of the events argue that the separation of the two halves of Pakistan was not an inevitable outcome but a product of contingency, world historical developments, and choices made by political actors. In this paper, I argue from a perspective of Neoclassical Realist theory of international policy-making that not only the separation of the two halves of Pakistan was highly predisposed but also a violent parting was highly likely. 1 also argue that contingent and individual choice-based accounts of the events in 1971 help perpetuate misperception and friction in current politics of the subcontinent. Accepting the inevitability of the emergence of Bangladesh would go a long way in normalizing relations between the three large countries of South Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]