Rising tensions

India’s reaction to the death sentence given to Kulbhushan Yadav for espionage has been as belligerent as expected. After the conviction was announced, the Indian government put out a statement saying it would consider his execution an act of “pre-meditated murder”. Now it has called off talks which were scheduled to be held on April 17 between the two countries on maritime security. The talks itself are important because the agenda included collaboration on how to deal with apprehended vessels. The detention of fishermen on both sides who accidentally cross the maritime border has long been a complaint of both Pakistan and India and these talks could have helped reach an agreement. But as it did after the Uri attacks last year, India has opted for non-cooperation. Pakistan, meanwhile, has shared the details of Yadav’s conviction. Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz gave a long briefing in which he explained that Yadav’s trial by a military court followed the law and that he was given legal representation. Aziz also revealed that Yadav was behind attacks on the Shia and Hazara communities, on gas pipelines and in Gwadar and Turbat. India’s response to that has been a demand for consular access to Yadav.

India’s defence of Yadav has largely been without explanations. It has no answer for why an Indian military official was in Balochistan – a province where India has long been accused of interfering – and its claim that a second passport was planted on Yadav is similarly unaccompanied by proof. There has been an attempt by Pakistan to ramp down tensions. National Security Adviser Nasser Khan Janjua has said that the two countries cannot remain enemies forever and will need to interact with each other to solve bilateral disputes. Even Sartaj Aziz in his briefing said more active diplomacy is needed to stop the Pakistan-India relationship from worsening. Good intentions aside, there seems to be very little scope for an immediate improvement. Ever since Narendra Modi has come to power, he has torn to shreds whatever scraps of a peace process were left. The only bilateral meeting held between the two countries was on the water dispute and even that only came after Modi had threatened to pull out of the Indus Waters Treaty. Modi had warned that he would try to isolate Pakistan internationally, something it seems he is still intent on doing. The plain truth is that we do not have a partner in peace right now and for the foreseeable future. May better sense prevail.