Are India, Pakistan hurtling towards a full-scale war?
Over the past 48 hours, tensions between India and
Pakistan
have escalated significantly, with both the countries engaging in military actions and retaliatory measures.
Operation Sindoor
has spilled into a larger conflict as Pakistan decided to escalate after Indian strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan. India's response has been non-escalatory but swift and strong but Pakistan still refuses to back down. This suggests India and Pakistan could be hurtling towards a full-scale war even though many experts have pointed out that Pakistan can't afford an extended and drawn-out conflict due to India's bigger military and economic might. However, the conflict has now entered a sensitive zone from where it can spiral quickly into a full-scale war.
#Operation Sindoor
India-Pakistan Clash Live Updates| Pak moving troops to border areas? All that's happening
Why India chose to abstain instead of 'No Vote' against IMF billion-dollar funding to Pakistan
How Pak's jihadi general Munir became trapped in his own vice
Pakistan's Defence Minister
Khawaja Asif
has reportedly declared that his country has no option except a full-scale war. "We don't have any other options other than this... We have to pay them back in the same coin," he said in an interview commenting on whether Pakistan was staring at a full-blown war with India.
Diplomatic developments indicate risk of war
5
5
Next
Stay
Playback speed
1x Normal
Back
0.25x
0.5x
1x Normal
1.5x
2x
5
5
/
Skip
Ads by
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Business Suites with CEO Deck Lounge at Prime 1, Vashi NX
Raheja Prime 1, Vashi NX
Learn More
Undo
US Vice President JD Vance on Friday weighed in on the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, as India continues its anti-terror operations. In an interview with Fox News, Vance said, "That's fundamentally none of our business."
"What we can do is try to encourage these folks to de-escalate a little bit. But we're not going to get involved in the middle of war. That's fundamentally none of our business and has nothing to do with America's ability to control it," he said.
Live Events
You Might Also Like:
Shadow of the Past: Pakistan army spokesman's father a sanctioned nuclear scientist with al-Qaeda ties
However, the US now seems to be shifting its stance. US secretary of state
Marco Rubio
on Saturday spoke with Pakistani army chief Asim Munir for the first time, urging him to de-escalate tensions. The US department of state said in a statement, "He continued to urge both parties to find ways to deescalate and offered US assistance in starting constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts."
Later, Rubio spoke with external affairs minister S Jaishankar and emphasized on the need for India and Pakistan to de-escalate and avoid "miscalculation," according to the US Department of State. "Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Secretary Rubio emphasized that both sides need to identify methods to de-escalate and re-establish direct communication to avoid miscalculation," a State Department press release quoted spokesperson Tammy Bruce as saying. "He further proposed US support in facilitating productive discussions to avert future disputes," it added.
It appears the US has sensed the limited conflict so far can spiral into a full-scale war and is willing to help both the countries to de escalate.
India-Pakistan conflict is taking a turn
After India's strikes on nine terror sites in Pakistan, the conflict between two countries has remained confined to shelling on LoC and drone and limited missile strikes. However, India has responded very strongly to Pakistan targeting its defence bases last night by hitting several strategic air bases in Pakistan including at Sargodha. Earlier, India had disabled Pakistan air defences at key sites.
You Might Also Like:
Cost of conflict: How India and Pakistan spend their money on defence
Though Jaishankar said after meeting Rubio that India's approach has always been measured and responsible and remains so, India's latest hits seem to go beyond mere tit-for-tat attacks and are likely to be aimed at emasculating Pakistan's air offence capabilities.
Another sign of escalation is the movement of troops which is being pointed out for the first time. At a briefing on Saturday informing the nation about the situation at the India-Pakistan border, Air Force Wing Commander Vyomika Singh said, 'We have seen Pakistan's military moving troops into forward areas, indicating offensive intent to further escalate the situation."
India hitting Pakistan's key air bases and Pakistan moving ground troops forward are both signs of a spiralling conflict.
Can a full-scale war break out?
You Might Also Like:
Would consider de-escalation if India stops attack: Pakistan's foreign minister
Escalation is now inevitable as the political establishment in Pakistan is now inclined towards giving the army a free hand, Aditya Sondhi, an analyst, has written in TOI. "When India announced war drills on May 7, one was inclined to think the 1971 blueprint of a slow build-up and rapid attack at the end of the year was likely," Sondhi wrote. "However, the strikes suggest the government believes India is both war-ready and up for a possible conflict along the China border as well. In many ways, we must expect the worst, and brave full-scale war. Even if that does not result in such linear fashion, localised conflict across the border is going to be amplified."
From mock drills to civil defence exercises to air sirens, India is going through the stages of civil preparedness which suggest a full-scale war cannot be ruled out. The states have been told to exercise emergency powers to implement civil defence measures. The Territorial Army has been pressed into service while administration has started enrolling volunteers for civil defence such as in Chandigarh. All these are signs India is preparing itself for the possibility of a full-scale war as Pakistan does not seem willing to de escalate.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Standard
14 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Jaishankar warns West on selective outrage, pushes strategic ties in Brussels visit
During his visit to Brussels, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar warned the West against selective outrage over terrorism, following the Kashmir attack that claimed 26 lives. Criticizing the global response, he argued that terrorism is a global threat, not just an India-Pakistan issue, and will eventually impact those ignoring it now. Jaishankar met EU leaders to push for stronger India-EU ties, pitched India as a trustworthy alternative to China, and opposed the EUs Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), calling it unfair. On Russia-Ukraine, he maintained Indias neutral stance, stressing non-prescriptive diplomacy. He also highlighted historical grievances with Western nations over Kashmir, emphasized Indias support for a multipolar world, and encouraged European companies to shift away from Chinese supply chains for security reasons.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
14 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Watch: PM Modi meets members of all-party delegations Salman Khurshid
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday evening met members of multi-party delegations who had travelled to world capitals to convey India's strong stand against Pakistan-linked terrorism following Operation Sindoor.
Indian Express
16 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Decode politics: In poll-bound Bihar, calls for domicile reservation grow. Why they are difficult to ignore
Ahead of the Bihar polls, an old issue has come to haunt the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government. On June 5, the Bihar Student Union, an umbrella body of several student organisations, led a protest in Patna demanding domicile reservation in government jobs. Bihar has an unemployment rate of 3.9% as per the latest NITI Aayog estimates, higher than the national average of 3.2%. Many young people in the state rely on government jobs, which have been marred with irregularities in the recent past. Hence, jobs are a politically sensitive issue, with resonance ahead of the polls. Those demanding domicile reservation argue that candidates from outside the state are taking away jobs that belong to youths of Bihar. Their slogan 'Vote de Bihari, naukari le bahri (Biharis vote, outsiders take jobs)' is fast gaining momentum as the elections draw closer. Under domicile reservation, the government of a particular state reserves a portion of government jobs or educational seats for its residents, the idea being to prioritise local candidates or protect local interests in competitive job markets. While Bihar does not have a general domicile-based reservation policy for government jobs, the NDA government claims that most of the recruits in recent government exams have been Bihar residents. Additionally, around a fortnight back, the Bihar government announced reservation of 4% of all government jobs for persons with disabilities from the state. In December 2020, following a series of protests, the state government had briefly introduced a domicile rule for school teacher recruitment. But it was withdrawn in June 2023 by the short-lived Mahagathbandhan alliance that subsequently came to power, allowing candidates from any Indian state to apply for the teaching positions. Then Bihar education minister Chandrashekar Yadav had cited 'vacant seats for quality mathematics and science teachers' as the reason, while bureaucrats had mentioned 'constitutional provisions and Supreme Court rulings' for the decision. The demand for domicile reservation flows from Bihar's economic and social challenges. As per a NITI Aayog report titled 'Macro and Fiscal Landscape of the State of Bihar', published in March 2025, Bihar's economy is predominantly agrarian, with 49.6% its workforce engaged in agriculture between 2022-23. Only 5.7% of the state has manufacturing jobs — one of the lowest shares in India. Service and construction jobs make up the rest of the jobs pie and constitute 26% and 18.4% of the workforce respectively. The lack of private-sector jobs makes government positions highly coveted, as they offer stability and benefits. Though the government has tried to expand hiring in recent years, demand far outstrips supply. They are demanding an official domicile quota with 100% reservation for Bihar natives in primary teacher recruitment and at least 90% reservation in other state jobs for candidates with valid long-term Bihar domicile certificates. The protesters argue that neighbouring states already protect the opportunities of their locals and that the youth of Bihar is competing unfairly with outsiders for limited opportunities. This, they argue, results in a vicious cycle of unemployment and migration from Bihar. State policies on domicile reservation vary. Uttarakhand reserves all Class III and IV jobs for candidates who have lived in the state for at least 15 years. Maharashtra also requires a similar 15-year domicile and fluency in Marathi for many government posts, effectively prioritising locals. Nagaland, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh have special constitutional provisions that reserve large fractions of local government jobs for indigenous tribes. Jammu and Kashmir had similar reservations before the abrogation of its special status in 2019. On June 2, the Central government notified 85% reservation for the residents of Ladakh. In 2023, the Jharkhand Assembly passed a Bill to reserve all government jobs in the Class III and IV category for domiciles based on the 1932 land record. But the governor returned it, citing constitutional issues, and it has not yet been implemented. Article 16(2) of the Constitution guarantees equality of opportunity in public employment and prohibits discrimination based on place of birth or residence. Article 16(3) allows only Parliament, not state governments, to prescribe residency requirements for specific posts. Besides, the Supreme Court has consistently ruled against state-level domicile reservations, emphasising national unity. In the Pradeep Jain vs Union of India case (1984), the Court held that 'sons-of-the-soil' policies are unconstitutional as they undermine equal opportunity. Exceptions exist under Article 371 for states like Nagaland to protect interests of the tribal population of the state. The Nitish Kumar-led NDA government has not yet given a direct public statement on the domicile protests. However, it has spoken out against this earlier. Last month, JD(U) leader Manish Kumar Verma said a domicile reservation policy would 'go against the Constitution', and could prompt retaliatory measures from other states and affect the millions of Bihari migrants working elsewhere. Instead, Verma said, the government was focusing on large-scale recruitment drives to address unemployment. Both RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and Jan Suraaj head Prashant Kishor have, however, backed the demand. Yadav has even promised 100% reservation across all jobs if the RJD comes to power in the coming polls.
