India-Pakistan tension
South Asia’s two nuclear-armed powers have been at loggerheads since they became separate states in 1947. Border disputes, especially over the region of Kashmir, have caused frequent spikes in tensions. More recently, terrorist attacks and geopolitical maneuvering are straining ties. China’s more active foreign policy and changing priorities in the United States have set off a shift in alliances, further fueling tension.
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Modi changes India’s Kashmir policy
For decades, India’s posture on the contested state of Jammu and Kashmir has been relatively stable, allowing autonomy in the region and seeking an agreement with Islamabad. Relations with Sunni Kashmiris have increasingly frayed, however, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has begun to shift its policy radically. India has ended the region’s special status and is moving to reshape the political landscape there in its favor, risking a violent backlash, rising tensions with Pakistan, and diplomatic pressure.
India’s evolving strategy in the Middle East
India is forging profitable new partnerships with Sunni Arab states as its economic profile grows and its ties with the U.S. and Israel strengthen. The changes are causing tension with its old ally Iran, however, which New Delhi still needs to keep Pakistan in check. This balancing act will only ...
The Kashmir crisis exerts pressure on both the U.S. and China
The conflict over Kashmir has led to three wars and countless skirmishes between India and Pakistan. As tensions are building up again in the region, outside powers cooperate to prevent the worst. However, Washington’s and Beijing’s influence over the decision-making process of the two nuclear weapons-armed states may be gradually ...
India decides on force to break a pointless cycle
The latest round of fighting on the India-Pakistan border reveals a changed mood in New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to order an air strike deep inside Pakistan in reprisal for a terrorist attack is evidence of a more muscular policy taking shape. If Mr. Modi is reelected in ...
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