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Opinion | India and Pakistan are not going to war any time soon, but expect the bluster to continue
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to keep up the anti-Pakistan rhetoric but heed international pressure not to escalate the conflict
- Meanwhile, cash-strapped Pakistan would not want a protracted conflict either
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Why you can trust SCMP
In just two weeks, tension between India and Pakistan has escalated so rapidly that the two countries are now at brink of a full-scale war.
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On February 14, a suicide bomber killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary policemen in Pulwama in Indian-administered Kashmir. The attack provoked a wave of anger across India, pressuring the government to act.
Subsequently, on February 26, Indian air force jets attacked targets in the Balakot area of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Although India claimed to have killed over 300 terrorists in these strikes, reports from the ground in Pakistan suggested that there were no casualties.
The Balakot attack put Pakistan’s armed forces in a tough spot. Their response was to send Pakistan fighter jets to conduct air strikes in Indian-administered Kashmir.
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In the ensuing confrontation between Indian and Pakistani forces, India said it had shot down one Pakistani aircraft while Pakistan said it had shot down two Indian jets. The pilot of an Indian fighter jet, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, was arrested by the Pakistani army.
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