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Can India actually win a war against Pakistan?
Global Village Space |
Saleem Akhtar Malik |
Indian Army releases a video showing the purported destruction, by artillery fire, of a Pakistani post along the LOC. Pakistan Army denies the Indian claim and counters it by issuing a video of its own, showing the destruction of an Indian post. Then, Pakistan’s air chief, after activating PAF’s forward air bases, carries out an aerial sweep of the contested Siachen Glacier in a Mirage fighter aircraft. IAF alerts its air bases.
Pakistan’s armed forces are fighting a war on terror for almost a decade. In this war, they have, particularly the army, suffered thousands of casualties. Then there is the LOC in Jammu & Kashmir, which keeps smoldering almost constantly, causing casualties on both the sides.
Indian and Pakistan armies are playing chicken over the LOC for the last many months. And now the air forces have joined in. Some weeks back the Indian Army claimed that it had carried out a “surgical strike” on militant jump off points in the Azad Kashmir territory. But the Indians had refrained from giving any details or video footage to support their claim. A surgical strike, as we know, is a physical attack on a target inside the enemy territory, aimed at the destruction of men and material. How the attackers had infiltrated, negotiated the heavily mined LOC, attacked the claimed “militant jump off points”, and ex-filtrated, without leaving any trace of their strike, are the aspects of which they have elected to remain quiet.
Read more: Increasing anti-Pakistan rhetoric: What is making India more adventurous?
Pakistan’s armed forces are fighting a war on terror for almost a decade. In this war, they have, particularly the army, suffered thousands of casualties. Then there is the LOC in Jammu & Kashmir, which keeps smoldering almost constantly, causing casualties on both the sides. Whether it is the war on terror or the slogging matches across the LOC, Pakistan Army publicly announces its casualties – it cannot do otherwise. The funerals and last rites are shown on the electronic media and the general public is fully involved. Surprisingly, if Indians were telling the truth about their surgical strike, there were no casualties on the Pakistani side. As I said earlier, the armed forces cannot hide their casualties even if they try to. Despite its many handicaps, ours is the world’s most open society. When pressed by the Indian public, the Indian Army maintained that the surgical strike was, in fact, an “Assault by Fire”, a euphemism for engaging the enemy with artillery and long-range weapons fire. Now, artillery duels and fire with small arms and infantry heavy weapons are nothing new across the LOC. When this writer asked an Indian Twitter friend about this assault by fire thing, he replied that it was nothing more than an eyewash, or words to the effect.
Why is the LoC heating up?
Why this present heating up of the LOC, and huffing and puffing by the Indians? If we look at our neighborhood, we find that India, the aspiring policeman of South Asia, and the USA, Pakistan’s erstwhile ally during the Cold War, is not happy with us despite our pliant political leadership. This has been made amply clear to us during PM Nawaz Sharif’s visit to the enigmatic summit meeting that took place a few days back in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, to pay homage to, and express solidarity with President Trump. Whatever his political bungling and personal failings, Nawaz Sharif represented Pakistan’s government at the Riyadh summit. The way he was sidelined, it was a collective insult to the people of Pakistan. By refraining from even giving a passing reference to Pakistan’s sacrifices in the war on terror, and by completely ignoring Indian army’s atrocities against the people of Jammu & Kashmir, Trump, and his Saudi hosts, made clear their displeasure to the prime minister.
If Pakistan Army is reduced to the status of an ineffective para-military or police force, India can emerge as the dominant regional power in South Asia.
Are the Americans and Indians angry with Pakistan’s political leadership? Far from it. They know that many Pakistani politicians prostrate before them and seek their help for coming into power. Since long, the American ambassador in Pakistan has been known as “The Viceroy”. Reportedly, a politician had once told the Ambassador that the parliamentarians belonging to his party were for sale. He had, then, requested the ambassador to help him become the prime minister. Another politician had promised the Americans that, if he were returned to power, will help them to defang Pakistan’s nuclear capability. Then there are the business interests across the border with India. The list is long.
Read more: A glimpse of the past: Was Pakistan ready to respond to India’s overt nuclearization?
It is the Pakistan Army which the politicians and the foreign powers want to neutralize and reduce to the status of police. The constitution of Pakistan, as it stands today, facilitates a loose federation where each political party has its own turf for wheeling and dealing. One can see it by having a glance at the present political set up where each political party has created its fief in one of the provinces. The fate of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) is hanging in the balance because of yet another political party, an ally of Nawaz League, wants to turn FATA into its hunting ground and staging area to blackmail both Pakistan and Afghanistan. Interestingly, if a law and order situation is created in any one of the provinces, the center has no power to declare an emergency.
Why does a toothless army suit America and India? Since 9/11, US has a presence in Afghanistan. It knows that, like in Vietnam, it cannot win the war in Afghanistan. Yet, it continues to pump troops and material into this “graveyard of civilizations”, because it cannot get rid of its mania of reshaping the world in its own image. Whereas Pakistan Army has almost rooted out terrorism from the tribal areas under Pakistan’s jurisdiction, Afghanistan continues to burn. America thinks that Pakistan Army is the culprit. Nothing could be a greater compliment to the Pakistan Army.
To tame the Pakistan Army, and counter China in the Asia-Pacific region, America is propping up India as its regional satrap. But India has a psyche of always “sitting on the fence”, as it did during the Cold War. It has its own ax to grind. If Pakistan Army is reduced to the status of an ineffective para-military or police force, India can emerge as the dominant regional power in South Asia. Clipping the army’s wings will result in relegating Pakistan to Finland versus the erstwhile Soviet Union- a country whose national interests will be subordinated to the American and Indian strategic objectives. Such an arrangement will make it possible for the Pakistani politicians to rule, like the Indian Maharajas under the British Raj, their respective fiefs while playing second fiddle to India. India will have an overland route for its trade with Afghanistan and, thence to Central Asia and Europe, without any quid pro quo to Pakistan.
Read full article:
Can India actually win a war against Pakistan?
Global Village Space |
Saleem Akhtar Malik |
Indian Army releases a video showing the purported destruction, by artillery fire, of a Pakistani post along the LOC. Pakistan Army denies the Indian claim and counters it by issuing a video of its own, showing the destruction of an Indian post. Then, Pakistan’s air chief, after activating PAF’s forward air bases, carries out an aerial sweep of the contested Siachen Glacier in a Mirage fighter aircraft. IAF alerts its air bases.
Pakistan’s armed forces are fighting a war on terror for almost a decade. In this war, they have, particularly the army, suffered thousands of casualties. Then there is the LOC in Jammu & Kashmir, which keeps smoldering almost constantly, causing casualties on both the sides.
Indian and Pakistan armies are playing chicken over the LOC for the last many months. And now the air forces have joined in. Some weeks back the Indian Army claimed that it had carried out a “surgical strike” on militant jump off points in the Azad Kashmir territory. But the Indians had refrained from giving any details or video footage to support their claim. A surgical strike, as we know, is a physical attack on a target inside the enemy territory, aimed at the destruction of men and material. How the attackers had infiltrated, negotiated the heavily mined LOC, attacked the claimed “militant jump off points”, and ex-filtrated, without leaving any trace of their strike, are the aspects of which they have elected to remain quiet.
Read more: Increasing anti-Pakistan rhetoric: What is making India more adventurous?
Pakistan’s armed forces are fighting a war on terror for almost a decade. In this war, they have, particularly the army, suffered thousands of casualties. Then there is the LOC in Jammu & Kashmir, which keeps smoldering almost constantly, causing casualties on both the sides. Whether it is the war on terror or the slogging matches across the LOC, Pakistan Army publicly announces its casualties – it cannot do otherwise. The funerals and last rites are shown on the electronic media and the general public is fully involved. Surprisingly, if Indians were telling the truth about their surgical strike, there were no casualties on the Pakistani side. As I said earlier, the armed forces cannot hide their casualties even if they try to. Despite its many handicaps, ours is the world’s most open society. When pressed by the Indian public, the Indian Army maintained that the surgical strike was, in fact, an “Assault by Fire”, a euphemism for engaging the enemy with artillery and long-range weapons fire. Now, artillery duels and fire with small arms and infantry heavy weapons are nothing new across the LOC. When this writer asked an Indian Twitter friend about this assault by fire thing, he replied that it was nothing more than an eyewash, or words to the effect.
Why is the LoC heating up?
Why this present heating up of the LOC, and huffing and puffing by the Indians? If we look at our neighborhood, we find that India, the aspiring policeman of South Asia, and the USA, Pakistan’s erstwhile ally during the Cold War, is not happy with us despite our pliant political leadership. This has been made amply clear to us during PM Nawaz Sharif’s visit to the enigmatic summit meeting that took place a few days back in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, to pay homage to, and express solidarity with President Trump. Whatever his political bungling and personal failings, Nawaz Sharif represented Pakistan’s government at the Riyadh summit. The way he was sidelined, it was a collective insult to the people of Pakistan. By refraining from even giving a passing reference to Pakistan’s sacrifices in the war on terror, and by completely ignoring Indian army’s atrocities against the people of Jammu & Kashmir, Trump, and his Saudi hosts, made clear their displeasure to the prime minister.
If Pakistan Army is reduced to the status of an ineffective para-military or police force, India can emerge as the dominant regional power in South Asia.
Are the Americans and Indians angry with Pakistan’s political leadership? Far from it. They know that many Pakistani politicians prostrate before them and seek their help for coming into power. Since long, the American ambassador in Pakistan has been known as “The Viceroy”. Reportedly, a politician had once told the Ambassador that the parliamentarians belonging to his party were for sale. He had, then, requested the ambassador to help him become the prime minister. Another politician had promised the Americans that, if he were returned to power, will help them to defang Pakistan’s nuclear capability. Then there are the business interests across the border with India. The list is long.
Read more: A glimpse of the past: Was Pakistan ready to respond to India’s overt nuclearization?
It is the Pakistan Army which the politicians and the foreign powers want to neutralize and reduce to the status of police. The constitution of Pakistan, as it stands today, facilitates a loose federation where each political party has its own turf for wheeling and dealing. One can see it by having a glance at the present political set up where each political party has created its fief in one of the provinces. The fate of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) is hanging in the balance because of yet another political party, an ally of Nawaz League, wants to turn FATA into its hunting ground and staging area to blackmail both Pakistan and Afghanistan. Interestingly, if a law and order situation is created in any one of the provinces, the center has no power to declare an emergency.
Why does a toothless army suit America and India? Since 9/11, US has a presence in Afghanistan. It knows that, like in Vietnam, it cannot win the war in Afghanistan. Yet, it continues to pump troops and material into this “graveyard of civilizations”, because it cannot get rid of its mania of reshaping the world in its own image. Whereas Pakistan Army has almost rooted out terrorism from the tribal areas under Pakistan’s jurisdiction, Afghanistan continues to burn. America thinks that Pakistan Army is the culprit. Nothing could be a greater compliment to the Pakistan Army.
To tame the Pakistan Army, and counter China in the Asia-Pacific region, America is propping up India as its regional satrap. But India has a psyche of always “sitting on the fence”, as it did during the Cold War. It has its own ax to grind. If Pakistan Army is reduced to the status of an ineffective para-military or police force, India can emerge as the dominant regional power in South Asia. Clipping the army’s wings will result in relegating Pakistan to Finland versus the erstwhile Soviet Union- a country whose national interests will be subordinated to the American and Indian strategic objectives. Such an arrangement will make it possible for the Pakistani politicians to rule, like the Indian Maharajas under the British Raj, their respective fiefs while playing second fiddle to India. India will have an overland route for its trade with Afghanistan and, thence to Central Asia and Europe, without any quid pro quo to Pakistan.
Read full article:
Can India actually win a war against Pakistan?
