Indo-Pakistani War of 1947

Causes: This is also called the First Kashmir War. The war started in October 1947 when it was feared by Pakistan that
the Maharajah of the princely state of Kashmir and Jammu might accede to India. Following partition, states were left to
choose whether to join India or Pakistan or to remain independent. Jammu and Kashmir, the largest of the princely states,
had a predominantly Muslim population ruled by the Hindu Maharaja Hari Singh. Tribal forces from Pakistan attacked
and occupied parts of the princely state forcing the Maharajah to sign the Agreement to the accession of the princely state
to the Dominion of India to get Indian military aid.

Result: The United Nations was invited by India to mediate the quarrel but the war was continued by both sides. Finally,
the UN Security Council passed the Resolution 47 on 22 April 1948. Thus, the war ended in December 1948 with the Line
of Control dividing Kashmir into territories administered by Pakistan (northern and western areas) and India (southern,
central and northeastern areas) on the basis of ceasefire positions.

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965

Causes: Since Partition of British India in 1947, Pakistan and India remained in contention over several issues. Although
the Kashmir conflict was the predominant issue dividing the nations, other border disputes existed, most notably over the
Rann of Kutch, a barren region in the Indian state of Gujarat. The issue first arose in 1956 which ended with India
regaining control over the disputed area. Pakistani patrols began patrolling in territory controlled by India in January
1965, which was followed by attacks by both countries on each other's posts on 8 April 1965. Initially involving border
police from both nations, the disputed area soon witnessed intermittent skirmishes between the countries' armed forces.
This war started following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was designed to infiltrate forces into Jammu and
Kashmir to precipitate an insurgency against rule by India. India retaliated by launching a full-scale military attack on
West Pakistan. The seventeen-day war caused thousands of casualties on both sides and also witnessed the largest tank
battle since World War II.

Result: In June 1965, British Prime Minister Harold Wilson successfully persuaded both countries to end hostilities and
set up a tribunal to resolve the dispute. The verdict, which came later in 1968, saw Pakistan awarded 350 square miles
(910 km2) of the Rann of Kutch, as against its original claim of 3,500 square miles (9,100 km2).

The hostilities between the two countries ended after a ceasefire was declared following diplomatic intervention by the
Soviet Union and USA and the subsequent issuance of the Tashkent Declaration. Both India and Pakistan claimed victory.
However, most neutral assessments pointed out that India had the upper hand over Pakistan when ceasefire was declared.
Shah Alam states that the 1965 war exposed Pakistan's inadequate training at all levels, misguided selection of officers,
poor command and control arrangements, poor intelligence gathering and bad intelligence procedures. In spite of these
shortcomings, Pakistan Army had managed to fight the large Indian Army. The United States and the Soviet Union used
significant diplomatic tools to prevent any further escalation in the conflict between the two South Asian nations. The
Soviet Union, led by Premier Alexei Kosygin, hosted ceasefire negotiations in Tashkent (now in Uzbekistan), where
Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and Pakistani President Ayub Khan signed the Tashkent Agreement, agreeing
to withdraw to pre-August lines no later than 25 February 1966.

India's Prime Minister, Shastri, suffered a fatal heart attack soon after the declaration of the ceasefire. As a consequence,
the public outcry in India against the ceasefire declaration transformed into a wave of sympathy for the ruling Indian
National Congress.
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

Further information: Bangladesh Liberation War

Causes: The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was the direct military confrontation between India and Pakistan during the
Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. Indian, Bangladeshi and international sources consider the beginning of the war to
have been Operation Chengiz Khan, when Pakistan launched pre-emptive air strikes on 11 Indian airbases on 3 December
1971, leading to India's entry into the war of independence in East Pakistan on the side of Bangladeshi nationalist forces,
and the commencement of hostilities with West Pakistan. Lasting just 13 days, it is considered to be one of the shortest
wars in history.

Result: During the course of the war, Indian and Pakistani forces clashed on the eastern and western fronts. The war
effectively came to an end after the Eastern Command of the Pakistani Armed Forces signed the Instrument of
Surrender,[on 16 December 1971 in Dhaka, marking the liberation of the new nation of Bangladesh. East Pakistan had
officially seceded from Pakistan on 26 March 1971. Between 90,000 and 93,000 members of the Pakistan Armed Forces
including paramilitary personnel were taken as Prisoners of War by the Indian Army. It is estimated that between 300,000
and 3,000,000 civilians were killed in Bangladesh. As a result of the conflict, a further eight to ten million people fled the
country at the time to seek refuge in neighbouring India.

In 1972 the Simla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan, the treaty ensured that Pakistan recognised the
independence of Bangladesh in exchange for the return of the Pakistani POWs. India treated all the POWs in strict
accordance with the Geneva Convention, rule 1925. It released more than 90,000 Pakistani PoWs in five months.

The accord also gave back more than 13,000 km² of land that Indian troops had seized in West Pakistan during the war,
though India retained a few strategic areas( including Turtuk), which was more than 800 km².