AS May approaches, memories of the conflict between India and Pakistan are once again coming to the fore. What was not anticipated, however, was that this year would present multifold challenges for Pakistan, ranging from tensions on another front with Afghanistan to the pressures of the Iran-US war, testing the country’s strategic and diplomatic capacities. At the same time, as the anniversary of the May stand-off nears, a renewed war of words between the two neighbours is inevitable.

Almost a year has passed since the two months of heightened tension and the brief four-day war, triggered by a terrorist incident in Pahalgam in India-held Kashmir on April 22. That crisis disrupted the prevailing geopolitical balance: India’s regional influence appeared to wane, while Pakistan found diplomatic space and regained a measure of confidence on the international stage.

Despite the charged rhetoric, the likelihood of a fresh military confrontation remains low. Recent provocative statements, particularly by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who suggested that last year’s operation has not yet concluded, and the response from Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, emphasising that any notion of war between two nuclear states is inconceivable and fraught with severe consequences, reflect more of a rhetorical escalation than an imminent conflict. Nevertheless, the memory of last year’s crisis is likely to rekindle public sentiment and political posturing on both sides.

India remains central to Pakistan’s strategic thinking, whatever it may be doing in the geopolitical and strategic spheres. Pakistan’s........

© Dawn