After the strikes, what’s left of India-Pakistan relations?

A few months ago, I got an invitation to attend a Track 2 dialogue on India-Pakistan ties. I politely declined and said there was not much scope for a relationship at the moment. If anything, the events of the last few weeks have dug the final nail in the coffin that is the India-Pakistan relationship.

The recent terror attack in Pahalgam in which 26 people were killed, was the worst attack on civilians since the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai in 2008. It has only deepened the mistrust and divide between the two countries. India’s air strikes on camps inside Pakistan this week mark a significant turning point. From the surgical strikes in Uri in 2016 to Balakot in 2019 and now this, India has made its red lines clear. And with these strikes, India has not just done a symbolic exercise, but has shown that it is willing to risk an escalation as it has done with the latest retaliation.