“Better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace.” – Buddha (560-483 B.C.)
World War II changed the world forever. In 1945, the scars of the war were as fresh as many combat wounds. People feared another war and the United Nations was founded to prevent disputes. It included 57 nations that promised to stop Red China and the USSR from spreading communism.
The Korean War began when communist North Korea invaded South Korea. Since the U.S. vowed to defeat and contain communism, President Harry Truman sent General Douglas MacArthur to Korea to force North Korea back across their border. When MacArthur ordered his troops to invade North Korea, Truman fired him for his defiance. This upset many Americans who wanted MacArthur to liberate North Korea.
On July 9, 1953, North and South Korea agreed to an armistice. A meeting was held in Geneva to discuss Korea’s future. One provision was for the U.S. to maintain a military base in South Korea to discourage future invasions by their northern neighbors. There’s not been one attack on South Korea under U.S. custody. “It’s easier to maintain the peace than to fight a war to obtain it.” – Robert E. Lee
A similar conflict between India and Pakistan arose out of the 1947 partitioning of British India over Kashmir. A partition was established for the Muslim-majority in Pakistan and one for India, which had a Hindu-majority. Kashmir sought independence since for centuries they had been subjugated by conquering empires. Kashmir, a Muslim country, agreed to join India in exchange for help against invading Pakistani herders. This triggered the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 that continues on today.
With three countries, China, India and Pakistan, claiming partial control of Kashmir, the region has been in conflict for seven decades. In 1980, both nations revealed that they had nuclear weapons. With Pakistan a close ally of China, the world has been sitting on a powder keg waiting to explode. Free world leaders walk on eggshells every time these nations start shooting rockets at each other.
Since 1947, there has never been a lasting peace between these nations. Tensions between these two countries went sour again recently, with both countries bombing areas not hit in decades. This was in retaliation for Pakistan bombing India-Kashmir without provocation. India stated the militant group was a proxy for Pakistan’s army, which is very concerning since they killed innocent tourists.
On April 22, after this militant group killed 26 non-Muslims, India launched Operation Sindoor that targeted nine sites in Pakistan. This escalated fears of a broader military conflict. It was the most significant, bilateral, world-threatening confrontation since early 2019 between these two nations.
It came at a time when the world is riddled with chaos, anarchy, discord and international terrorists.
For four years under President Joe Biden, U.S. foreign policy was “wait and see.” This attitude gave rogue nations an opportunity to expand their dominance without repercussions from the free world. “If the people can’t trust their government to do the job for which it exists – all else is lost.” – Barack Obama
As the sword-rattling between Pakistan and India got more intense, it was emanate for the greater good of world peace for the U.S. to be more proactive in helping to restore peace between these nations. Since India is a strategic ally and Pakistan is aligned with China, which has a quest for global expansion, it was important for the U.S. to make a bold decision and become the peacemaker.
“When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world we’ll know peace.” – Jimi Hendrix
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s friendship with President Donald Trump, plus the U.S.’s economic ties with India gave Trump leverage to push for the ceasefire. The U.S. and other nations knew that the stakes were higher than any time in the past for a major conflict. This drove over 13 countries, led by Trump and Secretary of State Marko Rubio, to negotiate the ceasefire.
Behind the scenes, U.S. mediators, alongside diplomatic back channels and the regional players, proved critical in pulling the nuclear-armed rivals back from the brink of a major war. Before the U.S. stepped in, over 70 people had been killed on both sides; mostly in Kashmir. These hostilities were the most serious between these nations since 1971, when India and Pakistan were at war.
A fellow at the Brookings Institute claims Rubio’s call to Pakistani Army Chief Asim Munir on May 9 “was the crucial point” that opened the door for the coalition of nations, led by the U.S., to broker the ceasefire. Ashley Tellis, a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said “The U.S. was indispensable. This outcome would not have occurred without Secretary Rubio.” Global diplomats agree the U.S. was the key player at this convocation.
Trump knew Rubio, as a long-time former trusted member of the U.S. Senate, had the knowledge to negotiate a ceasefire and end this conflict. He knew it was critical since both countries have nuclear weapons and between them, one fifth of the world’s population lives there. Continued instability between these nations could fester into “the mother of all wars.”
When Biden pulled all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan, India lost the “buffer of the U.S. military” between them and Pakistan. With global instability, the Russia and Ukraine war, China threatening to invade Twain, and ongoing problems in Iran and Israel, these nuclear-armed theocratic nations could ill afford the loss of the mere presence of American troops as peacekeepers in the region.
The combination of circumstances between Pakistan and India are similar to those that prompted the solution to resolve future conflicts in Korea. Although there was no official agreement for the U.S. to maintain troops in Afghanistan as a buffer between Pakistan and India to help prevent future conflicts, just having American GIs there helped bring more security to this region.
The abrupt departure of U.S. troops from Afghanistan allowed the Taliban to take control of the country posthaste. The Taliban took its first province on August 6 and by August 15, they were at the gates of Kabul. This prompted tens of thousands of people to flee to neighboring nations including Pakistan, which didn’t want them. President Ashraf Ghani left Kabul immediately.
The former chief minister of Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah, said relations between these countries will improve only when the army goes and there is a people’s government in Pakistan. Pakistanis want friendship with India, but their leaders don’t. He says, “Pakistan is a failed state because its rulers have chosen confrontation with India over working for the people. Since both nations have nuclear weapons, God only knows what will happen if these countries don’t reconcile their differences.”
“Getting along well with other people is still the world’s most needed skill. With it … there is no limit to what a person can do. We need people, we need the cooperation of others.” – Earl Nightingale
This article was originally published at www.thecentersquare.com
