The US and West is to blame for India-Pakistan hating each other for 60+ years! Wow. Is there anything you guys don’t blame the US and “West” for?
Use common sense. How can you have peace when one side wants to take the other side’s territory? Pakistan does not have the power to take Kashmir so it should forfeit claims to it for the sake of peace. It can then tether itself to the rising giants China and India economically and in the process lift itself up. Pakistan does more trade with Afghanistan than India. That is ridiculous!
But yeah, the US’s $14 trillion economy is dependent on selling a few jets to Pakistan and India.
I would like Kashmiris to have a chance to determine their own fate but let’s face it: India will never allow such a vote. No country would allow a vote on secession. Would Pakistan allow Baluchistan or Wazirstan to hold such a vote? Canada did but then said if even if Quebec voted to secede it would not be allowed to leave Canada.
In theory the international community could pressure India to hold a vote through sanctions but that is both unlikely to happen and unlikely to work. Countries will not cede land. Besides, the UN would never impose such sanctions because of the precedent that would set. If India must be forced to allow a vote on secession what about the others of Russia and China that want to secede (which means an automatic veto from both nations, end of the issue at the UN)? What about Baluchistan in Pakistan, the Kurdish areas in Iran, Iraq, and Turkey, South Ossetia in Georgia, the Basque region in Spain and so on. Would the UN then impose sanctions to hold votes in all these places? I doubt it. Anyway, Russia and China would veto any such resolution so there is no hope of forcing India to hold a vote.
The other option is to take it with force. This is impossible. India is far stronger than Pakistan. Its military budget is $33 billion, Pakistan’s is $8 billion. It has a far larger economy, far more resources, far more people, etc. There is no way Pakistan can beat India in a conventional war. Suppose that by some miracle Pakistan did beat India and take Kashmir. Is that worth the risk of nuclear retaliation by India? Is Kashmir worth losing Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, etc.?
The problem is any leader who gave up on Kashmir would be toppled in Pakistan so it will remain a costly and dangerous catch 22.