Conflict between India, Pakistan runs deep

In this story:
Partition, bloody partition
Young governments, old wounds

As two nations united by history but divided by destiny, India and Pakistan are almost like two estranged siblings. Their rivalries over five decades have prevented both countries from realizing their full economic and geopolitical potential.

The two countries have fought three wars, two of them over the disputed region of Kashmir. The region is small, but nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, its strategic importance and beauty make it a prized possession.

The friction between India and Pakistan is relevant to the rest of the world not only because both are the newest members of the nuclear club; it also affects the stability and economic potential of region that includes more than a billion people, some 950 million in India alone.

Partition, bloody partition

But the countries' historic disputes over Kashmir will not be resolved easily. The seeds for division were sown in their partition.

Britain, bowing to religious schisms at the time, carved the Muslim state of Pakistan out of Indian territory. The Hindu ruler of the predominantly Muslim area of Kashmir acceded later to India - an action which Pakistan never recognized.

The two countries went to war after which India retained two thirds in an uneasy truce.

Pakistan and India fought a second inconclusive war over the Himalayan territory in 1965. The countries have pledged to resolve their dispute peacefully, but have made little tangible progress.

Pakistan wants a referendum to allow Kashmiris to decide who is to rule them. India, which initially agreed to the idea, now opposes it.

Kashmir's own separatist movement has claimed thousands of lives in the Indian-ruled areas since 1990. India accuses Pakistan of supporting the separatists militarily, but Islamabad says it only provides political support.

Added to the mix, Indian troops helped East Pakistan break away from West Pakistan during a civil war in 1971, leading to the creation of the independent nation of Bangladesh.

Young governments, old wounds

India and Pakistan exchange artillery fire almost daily across the cease-fire line that divides Kashmir. In July 1999, India and Pakistan came to the brink of another war in disputed Kashmir. India fought an 11-week undeclared battle with what it described as Pakistani army troops who infiltrated the region across snow-bound Himalayan mountains.

But the two governments have also made clear that they want a peaceful resolution to the issues that divide them. Whether India and Pakistan can capitalize on that desire for peace, or whether the long hostilities will destroy any such initiative remains to be seen.