India Pakistan ceasefire agreement

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In News: Both India and Pakistan have given credit for the ceasefire agreement to military commanders, yet several signs indicate that back channel diplomacy 

History India-Pakistan ceasefire agreement

• Karachi Agreement 1949
  • In July 1949, India and Pakistan signed the Karachi agreement officially known as Agreement Between Military Representatives of India and Pakistan Regarding the Establishment of a Cease-Fire Line in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
  • An 832 km long ceasefire line was established under the Karachi agreement which was to be supervised by military observers. 
  • These military observers formed the core of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP).

Situation post-1965

• The situation along the ceasefire line became tense in 1965 when both the countries went to war after India launched a full-fledged attack on Pakistan following its attempts to infiltrate its forces into Jammu and Kashmir and stir an insurgency against India. 
• After several interventions of the Security Council and the Secretary-General to restore peace along the border, resolution 211 was adopted by the Security Council in September 1965 demanding the two countries to restore ceasefire and withdraw armed forces to the positions held before August 5.
• The ceasefire was accepted by both countries. 

Conversion of ceasefire line to LoC

• Following the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971 also known as the Bangladesh Liberation war, the Shimla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan. 
• Through the agreement, both the countries vowed to reduce the conflict and improve their mutual relations. 
• The agreement converted the ceasefire line to the Line of Control (LoC).

Violation Of ceasefire

• While both the countries already have a ceasefire agreement in place since 2003, the violations were common. The LoC saw periodic flare ups of cross-firing leading to loss of civil as well as military lives.
• India has accused Pakistan Army of providing cover-fire to enable cross-border terrorists the opportunity to enter Indian territory.
• The cross-border firing became more serious after the relations between the countries were especially strained after the Pulwama terror attack in February 2019, Balakot surgical strike, and India’s decision to scrap Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in August in the same year.
• The pact comes at a time when Pakistan is staring at a post-US exit Afghanistan and India is dealing with a resurgent China.

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