‘Strategically, Kashmir offers high altitude military advantage and critical water sources. Emotionally, it invokes pride, pain and nationalism on both sides.’ In this week’s episode, we talk about the most recent tensions in Kashmir, a contested region between India and Pakistan. Our guest this week – Dr Ashok Sharma PhD – is a Visiting Fellow at the University of New South Wales – Canberra at the Australian Defence Force Academy. His research is in International Politics and he is an expert on South Asian geopolitics.

On 22 April 2025, a terrorist attack in Indian-Administered Kashmir which killed 26 civilians who were mostly Hindu tourists led to escalations between India and terrorist organisations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Administered Kashmir. India responded to the terrorist attack by launching nine missile strikes onto targets in both Pakistan and Pakistan-Administered Kashmir, followed by a series of skirmishes and drone strikes between the two countries. Pakistan then claimed to have shot-down five Indian fighter jets. Four days of tense escalation from the two nuclear nations were halted when a ceasefire was brokered on 10 May 2025.

Kashmir was partitioned in 1947 between India and Pakistan with a Line of Control dividing both countries ever since. Conflict has continued between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, with the first Indo-Pakistani war in 1965 and the Kargil War in 1999, and countless skirmishes in between. Beyond the geopolitical rivalry, the region has experienced waves of insurgency, crackdowns, and political unrest, particularly following the rise of separatist movements in the late 1980s. The revocation of Article 370 by the Indian government in 2019, which removed the region’s special autonomous status, further intensified tensions. This episode tells the story of Kashmir and how complex this long-standing feud between nuclear powers really is.

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