Opinion: How India and Pakistan can step back from the brink of war
Narendra Modi on Feb. 28. By Nirupama Rao March 11 at 11:44 AM Nirupama Rao, a former Indian foreign secretary and ambassador to the United States and China, is a global fellow at the Wilson Center and councilor at the World Refugee Council. Delay the war, it is betterIt is the blood of Adam, after all These words seemed prescient in recent days, as the two nuclear-armed nations came closer to war than they have in decades.
Tensions have since slowed, though small-scale skirmishes have continued on the border. But in truth, there was darkness in the relationship between the two countries long before the recent escalation — darkness that will remain as we begin to look ahead. The relationship between India and Pakistan is defined by distrust, mutual suspicion and enmity.
No government in New Delhi can advocate diplomacy when terrorist groups in Pakistan flourish. Pakistan cannot afford to play catch-me-if-you-can on terrorism. If it keeps the terrorism tap flowing, it will only trigger a heightened military response from India to enforce deterrence. That would dramatically increase the threat of outright war.
For its part, India should further strengthen counter-terrorism measures. Pulwama pointed to breaches in its security and how it transports security personnel through risk-saturated terrain. It should also strengthen its own diplomatic campaign to internationally proscribe Pakistani terrorist groups and individuals. In particular, China — which has blocked proposals in the U.N.
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