Pakistani-Indian armed conflicts of 1947-1949, 1965, 1971, clashes between Pakistani and Indian troops, due to the tension of Pakistani-Indian relations due to problems that arose during the division of the former British colony of India into two states - India and Pakistan. These relations were complicated by the subsequent intervention of the imperialist countries and the chauvinist policy of the reactionary circles of both states.

1) It arose in April because of the disputed territory - the northern part of the Kutch Rann Desert, where the border between India and Pakistan was not demarcated. Started up fighting between Pakistani units. and ind. armies. On June 30, a ceasefire agreement was signed. Feb 19 1969 decision of the international. Tribunal under the auspices of the UN, the disputed territory was divided between India and Pakistan. July 4, 1969 India and Pakistan agreed to this decision;

2) On August 5, units of specially trained armed men invaded the Kashmir Valley from the Pakistani part of Kashmir. By mid-August, hostilities between Indian and Pakistani troops had unfolded virtually along the entire ceasefire line. With the assistance of the UN Security Council on September 23, the fire was ceased. At the initiative of the Soviet government, on January 4-10, 1966, a meeting was held in Tashkent between the President of Pakistan and the Prime Minister of India, at which an agreement was reached on the withdrawal of the armed forces of the parties to the positions occupied by them until August 5, 1965.

Conflict 1971 arose in connection with the unfolding struggle of the people of East Pakistan for independence. The crisis in Pakistan, the influx of several million refugees to India from East Pakistan led to an aggravation of Indo-Pakistani relations. On November 21, hostilities broke out between India and Pakistan in East Pakistan. On December 3, the Pakistani army opened hostilities on the western borders of India. In East Pakistan, Indian troops, with the assistance of local partisans - "muktibahini" - reached Dhaka by mid-December. On December 16, Pakistani troops operating in East Pakistan surrendered. The next day, hostilities on the western front were also stopped. Vost. Pakistan achieved independence.

Yu. V. Gankovsky

Used materials from the Soviet military encyclopedia in the 8th volume, vol. 6.

Third Indo-Pakistani war - an armed conflict between India and Pakistan that occurred in December 1971. The reason for the war was the intervention of India in civil war marching in East Pakistan. As a result of the hostilities, Pakistan suffered a heavy defeat, and East Pakistan (Bangladesh) gained independence.

background [ | ]

In December 1970, parliamentary elections were held in the country, in which the majority of the votes were won by the East Pakistani Awami League Party (Freedom League), headed by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who came up with a program to grant significant autonomy to the east of the country. According to the country's constitution, she received the right to form a government. But Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the leader of the Pakistan People's Party, which won in the west, opposed the appointment of Rahman as prime minister. Negotiations between politicians with the participation of Yahya Khan were unsuccessful. On March 7, 1971, Rahman delivered a speech in which he announced that his party was fighting for the independence of East Pakistan. In response, on March 25, the Pakistani army, which consisted mainly of people from the west, launched Operation Searchlight to establish control over all the cities in the eastern part of the country. Awami League was banned and Mujibur Rahman was arrested. March 27 Major armed forces country Zaur Rahman read out on the radio the text of the declaration of independence written by Mujibur, proclaiming the creation of the state of Bangladesh. A civil war broke out in the country.

Bangladeshi Liberation War[ | ]

At first, the Pakistani army met minimal resistance. By the end of spring, she had occupied all the cities of Bangladesh and crushed any political opposition. A guerrilla movement developed in rural areas, the members of which were known as "mukti bahini". Their ranks quickly replenished due to army deserters, as well as the local population. The army unleashed a brutal crackdown on Bangladeshis; according to existing estimates, by the end of 1971, from 200 thousand to 3 million inhabitants of the country were killed. At least 8 million refugees fled to India.

The Pakistani military forces in Bangladesh were in a hopeless situation. The three divisions stationed here were dispersed to conduct combat operations against the partisans, had almost no air support and could not stop the advance of the three Indian corps. Conscious of this circumstance, the Pakistani command tried to impose a war on two fronts on India and launched offensive operations in the west. However, on the western front, the superiority turned out to be on the side of the Indian army. In the Battle of Longewal on December 6, a single company of the 23rd Battalion, Punjab Regiment, successfully held back the advance of the reinforced 51st Infantry Brigade of Pakistan; Indian fighter-bomber aircraft played a significant role in this battle, destroying a large number of enemy equipment on the outskirts of Longeval. In general, the Indian army not only repelled the Pakistani attacks, but also went on the offensive itself, capturing some border territories at an early stage of the war.

On the eastern front, the Indian forces, together with the Mukti Bahini units, quickly bypassed the main defensive nodes of the enemy. The decisive factor here was high mobility in difficult terrain. Soviet-made PT-76 amphibious tanks and Mi-4 transport helicopters have proven themselves well. By the end of the second week of the war, the Indian army approached Dhaka. Seeing no point in further resistance, on December 16, the commander of the Pakistani troops in Bangladesh, General Niyazi, signed the act of surrender of his group. On December 17, India announced a ceasefire. This ended the war.

War at sea [ | ]

Military operations at sea were marked by a number of combat contacts between the fleets of the opposing sides.

Indo- pakistani conflict 1971 demonstrated the premature refusal to place large-caliber cannon artillery on ships (over 100-127 mm). It turned out to be a much cheaper means of combating coastal targets, and at the same time no less effective than guided ship missiles. It was also confirmed that submarines continue to be reliable naval weapons - just like unguided torpedoes and "traditional" depth charges.

results [ | ]

As a result of Indian military intervention, Bangladesh gained independence. .

The 1971 war was the largest in a series of Indo-Pakistani conflicts.

Soviet-American confrontation[ | ]

Indo-Pakistani conflict: origins and consequences (23.00.06)

Kharina Olga Alexandrovna,

student of Voronezh State University.

Scientific adviser - doctor of political sciences, professor

Slinko A.A.

The history of relations between India and Pakistan is unique: the conflict that exists between these countries is one of the longest in all of modern history and officially has as many years as the independent existence of India and Pakistan. The issue of ownership of the disputed territories - Jammu and Kashmir is the cornerstone on which all the political aspirations of Delhi and Islamabad in the region converged, but at the same time, the roots of the problem go back to ancient times, resting in essence on interreligious and, in part, ethnic strife.

Islam began to penetrate the territory of India in the 8th century, and close interaction between Hindu and Muslim cultures began at the turn of the 12th-13th centuries, when the first states headed by Muslim sultans and military leaders arose in Northern India.

Islam and Hinduism are not only different religions, but also alien ways of life. The contradictions between them seem insurmountable, and history shows that they were not overcome, and the confessional principle was one of the most effective instruments of British colonial administration, carried out in accordance with the well-known rule of "divide and rule." For example, elections to the legislature of India were held by curiae, formed depending on confessional affiliation, which undoubtedly fueled controversy.

The presentation of the independence of British India on the night of August 14-15, 1947 and the division of the country were accompanied by monstrous clashes on religious and ethnic grounds. The death toll in a few weeks reached several hundred thousand people, and the number of refugees amounted to 15 million.

The problem of relations between the two main communities in India during the period of independence has two aspects: relations within the country and international relations with neighboring Pakistan, which is expressed in the Kashmir issue, which so seriously affects the atmosphere within states that even the Indian population in Pakistan and the Muslim population in The Indians turn out to be, as it were, agents of hostile powers.

During the Muslim conquest of India, under the authority of the Muslim rulers of Kashmir were only its northern and central parts, as for the south (the province of Jammu), the domination of Hindu princes from the Dogra people was preserved here. . The eastern, hard-to-reach part of modern Kashmir - the province of Ladakh - only nominally recognized the dominance of the sultans of Kashmir. Local princes preserved Buddhism and maintained active trade relations with Tibet. It was during this period that ethnic, cultural and religious differences were formed between the provinces of Kashmir, which are still the main source of tension in the region.

The British put Hindu rulers over the Muslim population and at the beginning of the 20th century. in Kashmir, a number of discriminatory laws were passed against Muslims, relegating them to the position of “second class” people .

In 1932, Sheikh Abdullah founded the first political party in Kashmir - the Muslim Conference, which since 1939 became known as the National Conference of Jammu and Kashmir.

At the time of the partition of British India Muslims in Kashmir made up about 80% of the population and, it seemed, its fate was predetermined: it was supposed to become a province of Pakistan, but, according to the provisions of the law, the accession of a principality to India and Pakistan depended solely on the will of its ruler. Ruler of Jammu and Kashmir - Hari Singhwas a Hindu.

Already in October 1947, the dispute over the future of Kashmir escalated into a direct armed conflict between India and Pakistan.

The situation became more complicated when, on October 20-21, 1947, the Pakistani government provoked an uprising against the principality of Kashmir by border Pashtun tribes, which were later supported by regular Pakistani troops.

On October 24, the creation of the sovereign entity of Azad Kashmir was proclaimed in the territory occupied by the Pashtuns. and its entry into Pakistan. Hari Singh declared that Kashmir adjoins India and turned to Delhi for help. Military aid was hurriedly sent to Kashmir, and the Indian troops quickly managed to stop the aggressor.

October 28 - December 22 negotiations were held between the warring parties. However, hostilities were never stopped, and regular military units of Pakistan were soon involved in them, which made the war protracted for one year.

Indian troops attempted to occupy Azad Kashmir, but in May 1948 the Pakistani army crossed the border and by August occupied all of northern Kashmir. More pressure troops of India on the detachments of the Pashtuns led to the fact that, with the mediation of the UN on January 1, 1949, hostilities were stopped. On July 27, 1949, India and Pakistan signed an agreement on a cease-fire line, and Kashmir was divided into two parts. Several UN resolutions urged the parties to hold a plebiscite, however, neither India nor Pakistan wished to do so.Soon, Azad Kashmir actually became part of Pakistan and a government was formed there, although, of course, India does not recognize this and on all Indian maps this territory is depicted as Indian. The events of that time went down in history as the First Kashmir War of 1947-1949.

In 1956, after the adoption of a law on the new administrative division of the country, India granted its Kashmiri possessions a new status: the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The ceasefire line became the border. Changes have also taken place in Pakistan. Most of the northern Kashmiri lands were given the name of the Northern Territories agency, and Azad Kashmir formally became independent.

In August-September 1965 there was a second armed conflict between India and Pakistan. Formally, the conflict of 1965 began because of the uncertainty of the border line in the Rann of Kutch on the southern section of the joint India-Pakistan border, but soon the flames of war spread north to Kashmir.

The war actually ended in nothing - as soon as the monsoon rains began, the Rann of Kutch became unsuitable for the movement of armored vehicles, the fighting subsided by itself, and with the mediation of Great Britain on September 23, 1965, a ceasefire was reached.

The results of the Second Indo-Pakistani War were more than $200 million in damage, more than 700 deaths, and no territorial changes.

From January 4 to 11, 1966, talks were held in Tashkent between the President of Pakistan Ayub Khan and the Prime Minister of India Shastri with the participation of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR Alexei Kosygin. On January 10, 1966, representatives of the parties signed the Tashkent Declaration . The leaders of the two countries expressed their firm determination to restore normal and peaceful relations between India and Pakistan and to promote understanding and friendly relations between their peoples.

The 1971 war included civil insurrection, mutual terrorism, and massive military action. While West Pakistan saw this war as a betrayal of East Pakistan, Bengalis saw it as a release from a repressive and brutal political system.

In December 1970, the Awami League party, which advocated equal rights for both parts of the country, won the elections in East Pakistan. But the government of Pakistan refused to hand over power to the Awami League and give the area internal autonomy. The punitive operations of the Pakistani army led to the fact that more than 7 million people fled to neighboring India.

In parallel, in 1970, the government of India raised the issue of liberating the territory of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, “illegally occupied” by Pakistan. Pakistan was also categorical and ready to use military methods to resolve the Kashmir issue.

The current situation in East Pakistan provided an excellent opportunity for India to weaken the position of Pakistan and start preparing for another war. At the same time, India turned to the UN for assistance in the case of refugees from Pakistan, since their influx was too large.

Then, in order to secure its rear, on August 9, 1971, the Indian government signed the Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation with the USSR, which also stipulated strategic partnership. After establishing international contacts, India lacked only the slightest moments to start a war, and she took up the education and training of "mukti bahini", which later played an important role in the war.

Formally, 2 stages can be distinguished in the Third Indo-Pakistani War. The first is pre-war, when hostilities were fought between states, but there was no official declaration of war (autumn 1971). And the second - directly military, when the war was officially declared by Pakistan (December 13 - 17, 1971).

By the fall of 1971, the Pakistani army managed to take control of the main strategic points in the eastern part of the country, but East Pakistani troops, operating from Indian territory together with the Mukti Bahini, caused significant damage to government troops.

On November 21, 1971, the Indian army switched from supporting the guerrillas to direct combat operations. In early December, parts of the Indian army approached the capital of East Bengal, the city of Dhaka, which fell on December 6.

When the crisis in the subcontinent entered the phase of armed conflict both in the east and in the west, UN Secretary General K. Waldheim presented to the Security Council reports on the situation on the ceasefire line in Kashmir, based on information from the chief military observer. On December 7, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution , which urged India and Pakistan "to take measures for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of troops to their own side of the borders."

On December 3, 1971, Pakistan officially declared war on India, which was accompanied by a simultaneous strike by the Pakistani Air Force, and the Pakistani ground forces also went on the offensive. However, after four days, Pakistan realized that the war in the east was lost. In addition, the Indian Air Force dealt a significant blow to the eastern provinces of West Pakistan. Further resistance in East Bengal lost its meaning: East Pakistan was almost completely out of the control of Islamabad, and military operations completely weakened the state.

On December 16, 1971, Pakistani General Niyazi signed an act of unconditional surrender to the Indian army and the Mukti Bahini. The next day, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto signed a ceasefire agreement in Kashmir. The Third Indo-Pakistani War ended with the complete defeat of Karachi and the victory of India and East Bengal.

The results of the war showed the serious weakness of Pakistan, since it completely lost its eastern half: the main and global change in the post-war situation was the formation of a new state on the world map - the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

At the end of hostilities, Pakistan occupied approximately 50 square miles in the Chamba sector, controlling the communications of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as parts of Indian territory in the Punjab. India captured about 50 Pakistani posts north and west of the ceasefire line and a number of Pakistani territory in Punjab and Sindh. On December 21, 1971, the Security Council adopted resolution 307 , in which he demanded "that a lasting ceasefire and a cessation of all hostilities in all regions of the conflict be strictly observed and remain in force until the withdrawal."

On June 28 - July 3, 1972, negotiations were held in the city of Simla between Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and President Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. The agreement signed by the parties determined the prospects for relations between Pakistan and India. The "determination" of the governments of the two countries was recorded to put an end to the conflicts.

The process of demarcation of the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir and mutual withdrawal of troops was completed in December 1972. Diplomatic relations between India and Pakistan were restored in May 1976.

However, the terrorist attack in Delhi led to another aggravation of relations, expressed in the resumption of skirmishes on the line of control. Tensions also increased in connection with the approval by Pakistan in August 1974 of the new Constitution of Azad Kashmir and the transfer in September to the administrative subordination of the Pakistani federal authorities of the regions of Gilgit, Baltistan and Hunza.

The Indian government at the beginning of 1975 concluded an agreement with Sheikh Abdullah, according to which he recognized the final annexation of Kashmir to India with the autonomous rights of the state guaranteed to Delhi.

But as practice has shown, despite the steps taken towards each other, each side was sure that they were right, and the Simla Agreement was and is being interpreted by India and Pakistan in their own way. Then the already familiar scenario developed: a recovery and replenishment tour, equipping with more high-tech weapons and a new surge in conflict.

Since the mid-1980s, for several years, the armies of the parties were almost daily involved in air or artillery duels on the northern tip of the border with China - the ownership of the high-mountainous Siachen glacier in the foothills of the Karakorum was disputed.

The reason for the start of hostilities on Siachen was information about the imminent arrival in Pakistan of a Japanese group that planned to climb Remo Peak in 1984, which is located in the most important area from the point of view of control over the entire glacier. The Japanese were to be escorted by a group of Pakistani military, which Delhi did not like very much, and he accused Pakistan of trying to establish control over Siachen. Both India and Pakistan by that time planned to conduct an operation to master the glacier.

However, the Indian military launched the offensive first. On April 13, 1983, the implementation of Operation Meghdut began. The Pakistani units, which approached only a month and a half later, found themselves in a series of clashes unable to dislodge the Indians from the positions they had captured. However, they did not allow the Indian units to advance further.

A high degree of tension persisted in the Siachen area until the mid-1990s, with 1987-1988 being the time of the most violent clashes.

Military clashes near the glacier still occur today. The last major battles involving artillery took place on September 4, 1999 and December 3, 2001.

Since 1990, a new aggravation of the "Muslim question" began, which was associated with the struggle of the Indian People's Party (BDP) for power. The mosque, built in 1528 on the site of a destroyed Hindu temple in honor of the god Rama, became the target for inciting a general protest. OK. Advani, the leader of the BJP, organized massive marches to the "birthplace of Rama", while he himself rode a chariot, uttering slogans that later spread throughout India: "When the Hindus are understood, the mullahs flee the country", "Muslims have two ways - to Pakistan or at the cemetery". This provoked unrest throughout India.

On December 6, 1992, the mosque was destroyed, and in response to this, clashes and pogroms of Muslims began in many cities. In total, at the end of 1992 - the beginning of 1993, 2,000 people died. And in March 1993, a series of explosions, organized by Muslim terrorists, thundered in Bombay. In 1996-1997, Muslims staged about a hundred bombings all over India.

Simultaneously with these events, the situation in the state of Jammu and Kashmir escalated. in connection with the sharp escalation of the subversive activities of separatist gangs. As a result of almost continuous fights with terrorists and sabotage, India has lost more than 30,000 soldiers and civilians.

After both States demonstrated in May 1998 that they had nuclear weapons, many analysts on both sides of the border started talking about a possible nuclear war between them. Nevertheless, in late 1998 and early 1999, there was a noticeable "detente" of tension in India's relations with Pakistan. There was an exchange of visits, and several meetings were held at highest level. The thaw culminated in a trip to the Pakistani city of Lahore by Indian Prime Minister A. B. Vajpayee by bus in connection with the opening of the Delhi-Lahore bus route in February 1999 and the achievement of a package of agreements at the highest level on the mutual reduction of tension.

The early 2000s were characterized by heavy terrorist attacks by Pakistani militants both in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, and in individual cities in India and in Delhi.

All efforts to "defeat" the situation, undertaken in early 1999, failed when tensions in Kashmir began to rise unprecedented since 1971 in May. Some 1,000 infiltrators from Pakistan crossed the Line of Control in five sectors. They were covered by Pakistani artillery, which fired across the Line of Control. The fire of the Pakistani batteries greatly impeded the advance of the columns of Indian vehicles bringing reinforcements and ammunition.

India, gradually throwing more and more new units into battle, by the end of May brought the number of troops to ten brigades of ground forces. The main battles took place in the Kargil, Dras, Batalik and Turtok sectors and the Mushkokh valley. These events were called the "Kargil conflict". And the operation to recapture the captured heights was called "Vijay".

India was ready to extend the hostilities to adjacent territories to relieve tension in the Kargil region, but then refrained from crossing the internationally recognized border in Punjab, where Pakistani troops were concentrated. In general, the actions of the Indian armed forces did not go beyond the Line of Control.

Islamabad denied any involvement in the Kargil clashes, arguing that it was only moral support for "freedom fighters." Soon, direct evidence of the participation of Pakistanis in military clashes was received - several militants who had relevant documents were captured by the Indians.

By mid-June, the Indians managed to recapture most of the heights, but the gangs finally left Indian territory only after N. Sharif admitted on July 12 that they were controlled from Pakistan and authorized their withdrawal.

After the Kargil clash, there were periods of de-escalation. But, as subsequent events showed, the potential for hostility accumulated in relations between India and Pakistan did not allow even such a small success to take root: skirmishes between the regular units of both countries resumed on the Line of Control, which subsided after the end of the Kargil crisis.

At present, the border between the Indian and Pakistani parts of Kashmir runs along the Line of Control, fixed by the parties in the Simla Agreement. However, clashes on religious grounds and in territorial terms still occur. The conflict is by no means over. Moreover, it can be argued that the threat new war is not excluded. The situation is aggravated by the fact that new players are being introduced into the conflict under the pretext of maintaining peace, in particular, the United States, Afghanistan and China.

The current state of the conflict is also different in that India and Pakistan are also pursuing economic interests related to the significant water and recreational resources of Kashmir.

As long as the Kashmir problem remains unresolved, mutual distrust remains between India and Pakistan, and this stimulates both sides to strengthen their defense capabilities and develop nuclear programs. A peaceful solution to the Kashmir problem on a bilateral basis can prevent the spread of nuclear weapons throughout the entire South Asian region.

An analysis of this problem at present indicates that specific proposals that take into account the interests of all three parties have not yet been developed. Both India and Pakistan actually recognize the existing realities - two Kashmirs, state structure, the presence of a third force, unwillingness to recognize each other's decisions, a peaceful way to solve the problem, the futility of military methods to find a consensus.

Literature

1. Belokrenitsky V.Ya. South Asia in world politics: textbook. allowance / V.Ya. Belokrenitsky, V.N. Moskalenko, T. L. Shaumyan. - M .: International relations, 2003. - 367 p.

2. Belokrenitsky V.Ya. Interstate conflicts and regional security in South Asia: textbook. manual for universities / V. Ya. Belokrenitsky; East/West: Regional subsystems and regional problems international relations: MGIMO(U) MFA of Russia. - M.: ROSSPEN, 2002. - 428 p.

3. Vasiliev L.S. History of the East: in 2 volumes: textbook / L.S. Vasiliev. - M .: Higher. school , 1998. - 495 p. - 2 t.

4. Voskresensky A. D. Conflicts in the East: Ethnic and confessional: Tutorial for university students / Ed. A. D. Voskresensky. – M.: Aspect Press, 2008. – 512 p.

5. Gordienko A.N. Wars of the second half of the XX century. / A.N. Gordienko - Minsk: Literature, 1998. - 544 p. (Encyclopedia of military art).

6.Resolution of the UN General Assembly A/RES/2793(XXVI) of 7 December 1971.

8. Ultsiferov O.G. India. Linguistic and Regional Dictionary / O.G. Ultsiferov: Ref. ed. – M.: Rus. lang. - Media, 2003. - 584 p.: ill.

9. Nuclear confrontation in South Asia / Ed. A.G. Arbatov, G.I. Chufrin. – M.: Carnegie Moscow Center, 2005. – 29 p.

10 Major General Hakeem Arshad, The 1971 Indo-Pak War, A Soldiers Narrative, Oxford University Press, 2002. - 325 p.

The people inhabiting the territory of Jammu and Kashmir, close to the Punjabis and practicing Hinduism.

For example, their admission to public service, especially to command posts in the administration and the army. The conversion to Islam of representatives of other religions was punishable by confiscation of property. Especially humiliating for Muslims was the law, according to which they were subjected to ten years' imprisonment for killing their own cow (See ch. Gorokhov S. A. Kashmir / S. A. Gorokhov// Georgaffia: country studies newspaper. - 2003. - No. 13. - S. 13 - 18 ).

"Meghdut" is the modern pronunciation of the Sanskrit "Meghdut" - "Cloud Messenger", the title of a poem by the ancient Indian author Kalidasa.

A nationalist party, which is a division of the oldest Indian organization " Union of Volunteer Servants of the Nation".

A nuclear war can break out not only because of irreconcilable differences between the leading nuclear powers of the world, but also on the basis of the military-political confrontation of the countries of the so-called. third world. For example, India and Pakistan. In the latter case, the danger is the dispute between the two capitals over the status of Kashmir. According to the expert community, the world is a hostage to this conflict, which at any moment can develop into a full-scale war with the use of nuclear weapons.

Experts admit that the model of the Indo-Pakistani confrontation over Kashmir, which is based on a "gift" from the colonial past of these two countries, is an example of an insoluble political conflict with unpredictable consequences for all mankind. In this conflict, a whole bunch of problems are bizarrely intertwined, which can hardly be observed anywhere else in the world, even in our crazy age. First of all, it should be noted that the conflict immediately began with an armed clash between the two states, which at that time had barely managed to gain independence. That is, he was initially involved in blood.

Let's multiply this by the nuclear status of the two countries, the interests of, again, nuclear China, which is striving to turn Asia into a huge market for Chinese products, and the desire of the parties to gain control over fresh water resources.

The bouquet also includes the problem of human rights violations, the problem of the radicalization of society with bursts of riots, separatism, the spread of the ideas of radical Islamism and, of course, the so-called. "Islamic" terrorism. Let's add here the extremely tense situation in the immediate environment of the two warring states: this is the motley walking field of Afghanistan, China with its Tibetan problem and tension in the historical East Turkestan, and the growing power of Iran...

Background to the conflict

As noted above, the conflict over Kashmir is a legacy of the era of British colonial rule in the lands of present-day India and Pakistan. The two states split in 1947. Prior to this, what is now commonly called British India was administratively divided into British India proper and dependent Indian principalities, of which there were about six hundred (!).

Actually, the division into India and Pakistan was carried out by decision of the colonial administration. The principle of religious affiliation of the population was taken as the basis for the division. The Indian princes were given the right to make an independent choice in favor of the future of Pakistan or India. Not all princes decided at once. Some of them wished to maintain their much-desired independence from Britain.

One of these princes was the ruler of the province of Jammu and Kashmir - Maharaja Hari Singh (1895-1961). Maharaja was a Hindu, and the bulk of his subjects were Muslims. It should also be noted that Hari Singh had a sharply negative attitude towards the anti-colonial movement and opposed it both on an all-Indian scale and within his principality.

For example, he had a personal dislike for the main ideologist of the national liberation struggle Indians Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964), also of Kashmiri origin. The Maharaja was no better off than the other leaders of the Indian National Congress. However, the post-war history of the 20th century took its own course and moved colonial India in the direction of gaining independence. Therefore, during the partition of British India that began in 1947, Hari Singh found himself in a difficult situation.

Meanwhile, on August 14, 1947, the independence of Pakistan was proclaimed. A day later, the same thing was done in India. Independent India did not attract the Maharaja. But the prospect of absorption by Muslim Pakistan did not please him either. As a result, Hari Singh chose the third path and declared the independence of Kashmir. However, in the summer of 1947, inter-religious clashes began in the principality, and the ruler lost control of the situation.

The situation was aggravated by the fact that a wave of anti-monarchist speeches arose, calling for the expulsion of the Maharaja from Kashmir. The emergence of a Free Kashmir government was announced. This gave Pakistan an excuse to send troops into the territory of the principality, under the pretext of supporting the self-proclaimed government. In response, on October 26, 1947, Hari Singh was forced in a hurry to sign a document on the accession of his principality to India.

As a result of this decision, the first Indo-Pakistani massacre broke out, which ended more favorably for India. About two-thirds of the former principality went to her. These territories received the status of an Indian state with a special legal status. Pakistan was forced to be satisfied with the rest of the Maharaja's possessions and created a province under the loud name of Free Kashmir (Azad Kashmir) on the part of Kashmir that he had captured.

So, on the one hand, hitherto uncoordinated and therefore unsteady borders between the two countries were established, and on the other hand, on political map of the world, a constantly smoldering hot spot has been created that has kept the world in suspense for the past seventy years.

(to be continued)

Aidar Khairutdinov

British India Independence Act and South Asia State Demarcation

The national liberation movement in Indian cities and rural areas was expanding. Anti-British speeches began among the Indian troops of the British-Indian Army. The Indian part of the officer corps, not to mention the rank and file, was losing loyalty to the British crown. In an effort to get ahead of the curve, on August 15, 1947, the British Parliament passed the Indian Independence Act.

The British government, in accordance with the plan developed by the last Viceroy of India, Lord Louis Mountbatten, divided the country in 1947 along religious lines. Instead of a single state, two dominions were created - Pakistan, to which territories populated predominantly by Muslims, and the Indian Union (India proper), where the majority of the population were Hindus, departed. At the same time, the territory of India proper cut Pakistan into two parts with a wedge - West Pakistan (modern Pakistan) and East Pakistan (modern Bangladesh), which were separated by 1600 km and inhabited by various peoples (Bengalis - in the east, Punjabis, Sindhis, Pashtuns and Baluchis - in the West). At the same time, even a whole nation, the Bengalis, was divided according to religious principle: its Muslim part turned out to be part of East Pakistan, and the Hindu Bengalis made up the population of the Indian state of Bengal. East Pakistan was surrounded by Indian territory on three sides, on the fourth - its border passed through the waters of the Bay of Bengal. Partition was accompanied exclusively by the bloody migration of millions of Hindus and Sikhs to India, and Muslims to Pakistan. Died, according to various estimates, from half a million to a million people.
To the content of the chapter

First Indo-Pakistani War

Additional tension in the situation was introduced by granting the "native" principalities the right to independently decide on joining the Indian or Pakistani state. Using it, the Nawab of the largest principality of Hyderabad in the center of India decided to join Pakistan. The Indian government, not wanting to lose this territory, sent its troops into the principality in 1948, ignoring the protests of Great Britain and the United States

Similarly, the ruler of Kashmir, predominantly Muslim and bordering West Pakistan, being a Hindu by religion, declared his intention to annex his dominion to India or become an independent sovereign. Then, in October 1947, Pashtun tribes invaded Kashmir from Pakistani territory, who wanted to prevent the transition of this predominantly Muslim territory under the sovereignty of India. The ruler of Kashmir appealed to Delhi for military assistance and hastened to officially proclaim the accession of the principality to the Indian Union. (¦)

By 1948, the conflict in Kashmir had escalated into the first Indian-Pakistani war. It was short-lived, and in January 1949 a ceasefire agreement was signed between the parties. Thanks to the activities of the mediation commission of the UN Security Council in the summer of 1949, a ceasefire line was established, one part of which was recognized as an international border, and the other became the line of actual control (somewhat later changed as a result of the second and third Indian-Pakistani wars of 1965 and 1971 .). Northwestern Kashmir was under the control of Pakistan (subsequently, the formation of "Azad Kashmir" (Free Kashmir) was created there), formally representing a free territory.

Two thirds of the former principality of Kashmir came under the rule of India. These Kashmiri lands were united with adjacent areas inhabited by Hindus, and made up the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Security Council in 1949 adopted a resolution to hold a plebiscite in Kashmir after the withdrawal of Pakistani troops from its northwestern part. But Pakistan refused to comply with the UN demands, and the plebiscite was thwarted. Pakistan gained access to the border with China thanks to its control over northwestern Kashmir, through which the strategic Karakoram Highway was laid in the 1970s and 1980s, providing Pakistan with a reliable connection with the PRC.

The India-Pakistan conflict over Kashmir has not been resolved. The events of the late 1940s determined the basic anti-Indian orientation of Pakistan's foreign policy. The Pakistani leadership from that time began to view India as a source of threat to the independence of Pakistan.

At the same time, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir itself, as part of India, there were separatist sentiments, the carriers of which opposed joining Pakistan or India and demanded the creation of an independent Kashmir state. On top of that, the eastern part of the state historically until the XI century. was part of Tibet, and its population still gravitates toward ties with the Tibetans. In this regard, the leadership of the PRC, which extended its control to Tibet after the victory of the Chinese revolution in 1949, began to show interest in the Kashmir problem, especially since there was no clarity on the issue of the border line between the Tibetan lands of the PRC and Indian possessions in Jammu and Kashmir. - in particular, in the area of ​​​​the Aksai Chin Plateau, along which the strategically important road for China passed from Western Tibet to Xinjiang. A hotbed of chronic tension has emerged in South Asia.
Deep relations with the USA and the USSR
Diplomatic relations of India with the USA and the USSR were established even before the proclamation of its independence, since the status of a dominion made it possible to do so. But India did not develop close relations with either Moscow or Washington. The superpowers were preoccupied with things in more important regions for them - in Europe, East Asia, the Middle East. This, in its own way, unusual and short-lived "vacuum of interest" in India partly contributed to the formation of Delhi's specific foreign policy line, the authorship of which belongs to the head of the first government of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru.
The deterioration of Soviet-Chinese relations in the early 1960s led to Moscow's growing interest in military-political cooperation with India, whose relations with the PRC remained tense after two conflicts over the previous ten years. The USSR provided India with significant economic assistance and began to develop military ties with it. In the first half of the 1960s, the scale of military supplies from the Soviet Union exceeded the amount of aid coming to India from the United States. This began to worry Washington. The John F. Kennedy administration set the goal of strengthening relations with India, despite Delhi's commitment to non-alignment and neutralism. The American president called India the key to Asia, believing that with American help it could become a “showcase” for the West, win economic competition with China and become a powerful counterbalance to it. After the Sino-Indian conflict, India became the largest recipient of US economic aid, although Washington was irritated by India's unwillingness to cooperate more actively with the US against China.

Afraid of being deceived in its hopes of turning India into a reliable partner, the US administration began to pay more attention to cooperation with Pakistan. After the "July Revolution" of 1958 in Iraq and its withdrawal from the Baghdad Pact in 1959, the value of Pakistan for American strategy in the Middle East increased so much that in March 1959 the United States concluded an agreement with Pakistan that provided for the use of US military forces. in case of aggression against Pakistan. Since 1965, Pakistan began to receive modern weapons from the United States.

But the development of US-Pakistani ties was not without problems either. The United States understood that the confrontation with India determines the interest of the Pakistani government in cooperation with the PRC on an anti-Indian basis. The prospect of a Sino-Pakistani bloc did not suit Washington.

But such a bloc was also undesirable for Moscow. That is why, focusing on rapprochement with India, Soviet Union sought to maintain good relations with Pakistan. The task of Soviet diplomacy was to limit Pakistani-Chinese and US-Pakistani rapprochement. The Soviet-Pakistani dialogue developed successfully.

Indian-Pakistani relations were tense in the first half of the 1960s. The visit of Indian Prime Minister J. Nehru to Karachi in 1960 and six-month bilateral negotiations on the Kashmir issue in 1962-1963. and in the first half of 1964 did not lead to an improvement in the situation. Since the end of 1964, armed clashes began on the Indo-Pakistani border. In the summer of 1965, they escalated into a full-scale war.

The development of events aroused the concern of the USSR and the USA, who feared the strengthening of China's position in South Asia. The United States, maneuvering between India and Pakistan, has suspended military assistance to the latter since the outbreak of hostilities, while warning China against interfering in the Indo-Pakistani conflict.

Moscow found itself in a position convenient for fulfilling the mediating mission: it had friendly relations with both India and Pakistan. The governments of both countries agreed to accept Soviet mediation. The United States also did not object to him. Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and Pakistani President Mohammed Ayub Khan arrived in the USSR. In January 1966, Indo-Pakistani negotiations were held in Tashkent with the participation of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR A.N. Kosygin, which ended with the signing of a joint Declaration of India and Pakistan on ending the war and restoring the status quo. Formally, it was believed that during the negotiations the Soviet Union provided "good offices" to the conflicting parties, but in fact the mission of the USSR rather resembled "mediation", since the Soviet delegate directly participated in the negotiations, which, in principle, is not provided for by the procedure for rendering "good offices".

The United States took a neutral position during the conflict. This was frowned upon in Pakistan, believing that Washington should have supported it more vigorously. Partly "in defiance" of the United States in October 1967, President of Pakistan M. Ayub Khan paid a visit to Moscow, during which he hinted at Pakistan's desire to reduce dependence on the United States in the military-political field. In early 1968, the Pakistani authorities announced their disinterest in extending the agreement that allowed the United States to use radar installations in Peshawar to collect information about Soviet military installations. During A.N. Kosygin's visit to Pakistan in April 1968, the USSR agreed to supply arms to Pakistan. This angered India. Trying to maintain good relations with both India and Pakistan, Moscow was generally inclined to stay on the side of Delhi.

The formation of Bangladesh and the Indo-Pakistani War

On the periphery of international relations, elements of confrontation were more noticeable than in Europe. This was confirmed by developments in South Asia. By the beginning of the 70s, the opinion in the Soviet Union was finally established, according to which India is a reliable partner of the USSR in the East, since Soviet-Chinese relations were extremely strained, and relations between the PRC and India were also very cold. True, India did not want to be drawn into the Soviet-Chinese confrontation. But she did not trust China, especially since she saw the desire of the new US administration to move closer to it. India was losing its position as a priority partner of the United States in the region, as it was in the 60s. (¦) Delhi knew that India's "historical adversary", Pakistan, was trying to help improve US-China relations in order to devalue cooperation with India for Washington. Finally, Indian politicians believed that there was such a negative factor as R. Nixon's "personal dislike for India" and the "anti-Indian fuse" of his national security adviser H. Kissinger. In the early 1970s, the previously existing US-Indian understanding was fading away.

True, the situation in the region developed rapidly, regardless of the mood in Delhi. After the division of British India, the state of Pakistan turned out to consist of two parts - western and eastern - which did not touch each other and were separated by a wedge of Indian territory. The capital of Pakistan was located in the west, and the eastern part felt abandoned and provincial. Its inhabitants believed that the central government did not pay attention to the problems of East Pakistan and discriminated against it in matters of funding, although half the population lived in the eastern part of the country.

In the parliamentary elections of 1970 in Pakistan, the East Bengal Awami League party won the majority of votes. Thus, in theory, its leader - Mujibur Rahman, who advocated the granting of autonomy to East Pakistan - received the right to head the central government. But by order of the head of the military administration of Pakistan (dictator) General A.M. Yahya Khan, who came to power in 1969, in March 1971 M. Rahman was arrested. Army units loyal to AM Yahya Khan were sent to East Pakistan from West Pakistan.
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