Beenish Pervaiz (Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow) | South Asian Voices
May 7 through 10 marked the one-year anniversary of one of the most intense crises in decades between India and Pakistan, two nuclear-armed neighbors that share a long and heavily militarized border and together hold at risk nearly 1.7 billion people. What began with a familiar trigger—a terrorist attack that India was quick to attribute to Pakistan-based groups—evolved into a crisis that differed in some key ways from earlier confrontations such as the Pulwama-Balakot incident in 2019. Among its many firsts, the crisis featured deep strikes across the international border for the first time since overt nuclearization, extensive drone and standoff operations, and one of the most significant beyond-visual-range aerial engagements in recent history. Yet despite these changes, the ending followed a familiar script with the United States stepping in to broker a ceasefire.
From South Asian Voices