Critical Triangle continues....

Paralleling the US invasion of Afghanistan was a series of events between Pakistan and India from December 2001 to 2002 called the Twin Peaks crisis. This crisis though seemingly tangential to the US-Pakistan-Afghanistan triangle, would in fact become an important element of their relationship. Like much of the story of US-Pakistan-Afghanistan relations, it was the India-Pakistan dynamic that would affect Afghanistan disproportionately.

Events that were to follow certainly played into India’s “US proximity exacerbates Pakistan’s revisionism” narrative. On 1 October, the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir was attacked leaving 38 persons dead. At this point India was still willing to show some understanding for the US’ request for restraint on India’s part. Home Minister, L K Advani, for example, expressed a “measure of understanding” of US equities in cooperating with Pakistan on counterterrorism. However, on 13 December 2001 Kashmiri militants attacked the Indian Parliament. India believes this was done with tacit Pakistani approval. Advani described the 13 December attack as “the most audacious and most alarming act of terrorism in the history of two decades of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism in India.”

This sparked off a major crisis with massive mobilisation of Indian forces on the Pakistan border. The US, whatever its belief or lack of belief in Pakistan’s complicity, went into full crisis management mode, urging restraint, and eliciting howls of indignation from India.

To he continued....