EDITORIAL: Air Exercises in IHK?
By the Editor

NEGLECTING Kashmiris bona fide struggle to make India quit the forcibly occupied part of the Himalayan State of Jammu & Kashmir, the Indian Air Force plans to conduct joint exercises with its US and British counterparts in November and early next year in held-Kashmir.

Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi said in Srinagar on Friday that exercises with US Air Force will be held in November while British Royal Air Force will be in IHK for exercises early next year.

The Indian Air Force chief’s statement about proposed exercises by US and British Air Forces in the occupied Kashmir with their Indian counterpart has caused surprise not only in Islamabad, but in other world capitals all-over.

Pragmatically, Kashmir is a disputed territory and the issue is on the UN Security Council agenda. The destiny of Kashmir is still to be decided by the Kashmiri people as per UN Security Council resolutions.

It’s an established diplomatic norm that other countries do refrain from involving themselves in any act in the disputed territory.

Amid such a milieu, the decision by the US and British Air Forces to hold exercises in the IHK is not only a violation of the diplomatic norms, but also constitutes an unfriendly act against Pakistan—which is party to the dispute.

Virtually, the exercises by US and Britain in IHK amounts to supporting Indian position in the context of the Kashmir dispute and emboldening India in its intransigence and belligerence to respect the over 14 million Kashmiris’ right to self-determination.

Such a course will also encourage India in its hegemonic designs in the region to the detriment of the regional countries’ sovereignty.

Understandably—the exercises, which come as a consequence of the high profile defence pact and civil nuclear agreement between India and US, are seemingly China specific.

Of-course, it’s an open secret that the defence pact and the civil nuclear agreement is bait to India to serve as Washington’s bully against China, which is being looked at as an emerging threat to the lone superpower in the coming decades.

Some reports suggest Israelis’ presence in IHK under the garb of observers and advisors. A dangerous scenario is, therefore—unfolding with serious threat to regional peace, security and stability.

In fact, India’s move to induct into the held-Jammu and Kashmir air power of two foreign powers in the name of joint exercises should be taken as a serious threat to the entire region.

Kashmir is a disputed region whose ultimate fate is yet to be decided as recognised by both India and Pakistan internationally, and bilaterally as well, under a series of accords and agreements beginning from UN resolution of August-13, 1948 on the Kashmir Issue.

Under these accords India is not entitled to bring in the disputed region foreign forces of any type under any nomenclature.

Sharp reaction from the Kashmiri circles over the Indian moves to induct air forces of the USA and Britain in held Kashmir to mount joint exercises in the disputed region is but natural.

Kashmiri circles interpret this stratagem of New Delhi as an effort to put an international seal over the fate of the Kashmir issue.

And it is shocking that both the USA and the UK, which had pioneered the Kashmir resolutions in the United Nations Security Council in early phases of the dispute over Kashmir, are now in collusion with Delhi are staging a demonstration of their airpower in the same disputed region.

The garb of the ‘show’ of this three-nation air power can be given any name but the fact is that it violates the international norms which recognise Kashmir as a disputed region between India and Pakistan.

It is a dispute left behind by the departing Britishers in 1947. This dispute involves fate of 13 million Kashmiris, these circles emphasised and urged upon the US and the UK to ask India to fulfil her Plebiscite pledge to Kashmiris.

The so-called joint air forces exercises need to be taken immediate notice of because of the striking contiguity of Kashmir with China and its geographic proximity with the oil and mineral rich Central Asia.

In a variety of ways it also means browbeating Pakistan to the extent of ‘submission’ in the region. The time chosen is very significant when Pakistan is faced with certain unusual circumstances in its north, again an insincere legacy left behind by the departing European and US bloc following the collapse of the former USSR and its vacation of Afghanistan in 90s.

Kashmiri circles are of the view that the immediate import of these exercises means selection of a ‘ground’ against Pakistan’s trusted friend China.

Overtly, it is also a pressure on Islamabad to sign off Kashmir. It is no less than a stern warning managed indirectly by India at a time when negotiations between Islamabad and New Delhi on Kashmir are a running process, these circles said with emphasis.

The reality stays intact that under no circumstances the people of Kashmir will allow any-one to cool off their struggle which has claimed thus far over 100,000 human sacrifices in held-Jammu and Kashmir.

Holding of any military related exercise with India by any foreign power in Kashmir would clearly mean that those powers would trample upon the political and human rights of Kashmiris. It will be a gruesome tragedy. Pakistan can—in no way—afford to remain unconcerned with the developments.

We feel optimistic that Islamabad will seek clarification from Washington and London—with New Delhi atop about the motives behind the projected exercises—with dynamism and vigour to get such a course blocked—at-once.● 

 -  Mumtaz Hamid Rao
www.MumtazRao.net