The Kashmir Dispute: Making Borders Irrelevant

For decades, the Kashmir conflict has been viewed as intractable, but recent developments now offer the prospect of a new era. Pakistani and Indian governments have undertaken new approaches to managing the region once called the “most dangerous place in the world” and have adopted the mantra of “making borders irrelevant.” As a result, the Pakistanis and Indians have increased interaction across the Line of Control which separates the two sides, including on issues such as trade. What does this slogan mean in practice and how committed are the various parties to change?

On June 4, the Brookings Institution and the United States Institute of Peace hosted scholars P.R. Chari and Hasan Askari Rizvi in a discussion about their upcoming study “Making Borders Irrelevant in Kashmir.” The study examines the opportunities and obstacles for increasing trade and movement across the Line of Control, the constituencies that would favor or oppose this approach, and the steps necessary to move the process forward. Brookings Senior Fellow Stephen P. Cohen provided introductory remarks and comments.

After the program, the speakers took audience questions.