On April 22, 2025, an armed attack claimed the lives of 26 tourists in the Pahalgam district of Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K). The terror attack once again jolted the already strained relationship between Pakistan and India. While Indian authorities did not release credible details of the attack, the Indian military has launched sophisticated missile attacks inside Pakistan’s mainland and attacked 5 locations inside Pakistan’s territory. In response, Pakistan shot down 5 Indian fighter jets, destroyed one Indian Brigade Headquarters in IIOJ&K, and severely damaged several Indian check posts alongside the Line of Control (LOC). These developments have resurrected a volatile and dangerous cycle: blame, brutality, diplomatic deadlock, and attacks on the other’s territories. After the illegal action of unilaterally abrogating Article 370 and depriving IIOJK of its special status, the Indian government had peddled the narrative of restored peace and prosperity in the area. The recent escalations highlight that unless and until the Kashmir dispute is resolved as per the United Nations (UN) resolutions, instead of unilateral actions with disregard for international law and diplomacy, the peace and development in the region would remain a chimera.
To deflect from its security and intelligence failure, India has once again accused Pakistan of sponsoring the cross-border attack. In response to the Pahalgam attack, the Indian government also unilaterally decided to withdraw from the Indus Waters Treaty without conducting a proper investigation, along with Operation Sindoor in the areas of Bahawalpur, Kotli, and Muzaffarabad. India has violated the UN Charter, International law, and established norms of inter-state relations.
In response, Pakistan has also taken a host of diplomatic measures to degrade ties with India, including a threat to suspend the bilateral Simla Agreement and responding to the missile attacks by shooting 5 Indian fighter jets and destroying a brigade headquarters in the kinetic sphere.
The bilateral animosity, starting soon after their independence from the British Raj, has further worsened due to political, territorial, and religious factors over the years. Since the inception of Pakistan and India as separate states, one of the main causes of strained relations has been the dispute over Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir has an important role for India and Pakistan due to its strategic value, particularly the abundance of minerals, water resources, natural beauty that attracts tourism, and the majority of Muslims in it. This dispute has triggered several wars between the two nuclear rivals. Over the years, the region has witnessed a sharp rise in the armed activities of local separatist groups, with their major aim to expel the occupied forces of India from the region. Their activities included the Uri crisis, Pulwama, and Pahalgam attacks of 2016, 2019, and 2025, respectively. After all these attacks, New Delhi was quick to blame Pakistan without presenting any concrete evidence. This threatening tone adopted by Indian leadership, inspired by Hindutva ideology, has engendered a vicious cycle of deeper bilateral problems, mistrust, and the absence of conflict resolution between the two countries.
A thorough and proper investigation is important, and the involvement of a third party can be made for clarity and transparency. The National Security Committee, the largest civilian-military apex body of Pakistan, considered India’s statement of 23 April 2025 as an existential threat, terming India’s unilateral decision to suspend the Treaty as tantamount to an ‘act of war’.
The international community, including major powers and the UN, must call for restraint, particularly pressurize India for restraint, as Pakistan has offered a neutral investigation of the Pahalgam incident, and also monitoring of the proper evidence before assigning blame.
The impact of the Pahalgam attack underscores the unpredictable nature of India-Pakistan ties and the ongoing instability in Kashmir. Without any mechanism for dialogue and de-escalation, such risk-dragging events can cause deeper conflict for both countries. India is also resisting new Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) and not adhering to existing ones. Pakistan feels the need to strengthen its international security, particularly in border regions, to avoid surgical strikes or air incursions from India.
Both countries can resolve the menace of terrorism by establishing joint mechanisms for counterterrorism. Pakistan has already proposed a joint investigation of such incidents, but India has shown no sign of accepting the proposal.
Above all, they need to resume long-term political discussion, especially on Kashmir, which remains the root cause of recurring disturbance and tension. The attack on Pahalgam was not just a tragedy, but it’s a wake-up call. Both countries are nuclear weapon states, with a history of conflict and an absence of enduring peace. A single spark, as the Pahalgam attack, has the potential to grow into a wider escalation. Thus, this tragedy could become a turning point, and the focus should be shifted back from confrontation and resort to dialogue. Both countries must move beyond the game of blame and bravado, instead, they should find ways to explore multilateral counterterrorism initiatives, interagency cooperation, bilateral communication, and deepen diplomatic ties. Peace, after all, is not created in times of calm, but tested and raised in moments of crisis.
Shamsa Kanwal is currently working as HR & Admin Assistant at Center for International Strategic Studies (CISS), Islamabad.She holds a MBA degree in Human Resource Management. Her reserach interest includes geopolitics and nuclear politics in South Asia.
