The two nations have been embroiled in numerous wars, conflicts, and military standoffs since British India was divided in 1947 and the dominions of India and Pakistan were subsequently established.
Except for the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War, which resulted directly from the Bangladesh Liberation War in what was then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), the main causes of conflict between the two states have been a long-running dispute over Kashmir and cross-border terrorism. India was abruptly granted independence in 1947, which led to its partition. Those who wanted a Muslim state intended for "Pakistan" and "Hindustan" to be segregated into equal and separate states after independence. Almost one-third of India's Muslim people still lived in the new country. Between 200,000 and 2 million people were killed in intercommunal conflict between Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus, which left 14 million people homeless. An Instrument of Accession was made available to Indian princely states so they could join either India or Pakistan.
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948
When Pakistan worried that the Maharaja of the princely states of Kashmir and Jammu might join India, the war—also known as the First India–Pakistan War—began in October 1947. Princely states were permitted to decide whether to stay independent or join Pakistan or India after the split. The largest of the princely realms, Jammu and Kashmir, was controlled by the Hindu Maharaja Hari Singh and had a sizable Hindu population in addition to a majority of Muslims.
The Maharaja was forced to sign the Instrument of Accession of the princely state to the Dominion of India to secure Indian military assistance after tribal Islamic forces, aided by the Pakistani army, attacked and took over portions of the princely state. On April 22, 1948, Resolution 47 was adopted by the UN Security Council. Along the line that became known as the Line of Control, the fronts gradually became more substantial. On the evening of January 1, 1949, at 23:59, a formal cease-fire was announced. While Pakistan acquired nearly a third of Kashmir (Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan), India took over roughly two-thirds of the state (Kashmir Valley, Jammu and Ladakh). The term "Pakistan-administered Kashmir" refers to all of the regions under Pakistani rule.
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which aimed to infiltrate forces into Jammu and Kashmir to spark an uprising against Indian sovereignty, this war began. India launched a full-scale military assault on West Pakistan in retaliation. Both sides suffered thousands of losses during the seventeen-day conflict, which also saw the biggest tank fight and armored vehicle engagement since World War II.
After the Soviet Union and the United States intervened diplomatically and issued the Tashkent Declaration, a truce was established, bringing an end to the fighting between the two nations, when the truce was announced, India was ahead of Pakistan.
Indo-Pakistani war of 1971
This war was distinct in that it was not sparked by the Kashmir dispute, but rather by the political conflict between Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the leader of East Pakistan, and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Yahya Khan, the leaders of West Pakistan, that was developing in what is now Bangladesh. This would lead to Bangladesh's proclamation of independence from Pakistan's political structure. Approximately 10 million Bengalis in East Pakistan sought safety in neighboring India after Operation Searchlight and the atrocities in Bangladesh in 1971.
India got involved in the ongoing liberation struggle in Bangladesh. Following a massive preemptive strike by Pakistan, full-scale hostilities broke out between the two nations. Along India's western border with Pakistan, Pakistan launched attacks at multiple locations, but the Indian Army was able to hold its ground. The Indian Army swiftly reacted to the Pakistan Army's movements in the west and achieved some early successes, such as seizing about 15,010 square kilometers (5,795 square miles) of Pakistani territory (land acquired by India in the Pakistani Punjab, Sindh, and Kashmir sectors but returned to Pakistan in the 1972 Simla Agreement as a gesture of goodwill).
The People's Republic of Bangladesh was established after Pakistani forces in East Pakistan submitted to the joint leadership of Indian and Bangladeshi forces after two weeks of fierce warfare. During the conflict, about 90,000 Pakistani Army soldiers surrendered. According to a Pakistani writer, "Pakistan lost a third of its army, a quarter of its air force, and half its navy."
Kargil War (1999)
The two nations' dispute was mostly contained. Pakistani forces crossed the Line of Control (LoC) in early 1999 and took over Indian territory, mostly in the Kargil area. In response, India launched a significant diplomatic and military offensive to expel the Pakistani infiltrators. The majority of the ridges that the infiltrators had encroached into had gradually been reclaimed by Indian soldiers two months into the war. Nearly all of the highland and an estimated 75–80% of the intruded territory were returned to Indian control, according to the official count. The international world, led by the United States, stepped up diplomatic pressure on Pakistan to remove its forces from the remaining Indian territory out of concern about a widespread escalation in the military confrontation. The already precarious Pakistani economy was further undermined by the prospect of international isolation. Following the withdrawal, Pakistani forces' morale deteriorated due to the significant losses sustained by numerous Northern Light Infantry battalions. The Northern Areas saw protests and fury as the administration refused to receive the dead remains of numerous officers. Nawaz Sharif eventually declared that nearly 4,000 Pakistani forces had been killed in the operation and that Pakistan had lost the war, despite Pakistan's initial refusal to admit many of its losses. Organized violence in the Kargil district had stopped by the end of July 1999. The Pakistani Army suffered a significant military setback in the conflict.
Kutch conflict (1965)
The 1965 Kutch conflict was a short-lived but crucial military conflict between India and Pakistan that focused on the disputed Rann of Kutch in western India. The Pakistan Army's military action in this region was code-named action Desert Hawk. According to the long-standing status quo, the Rann of Kutch was ruled by India at the time, but its border was still one of the few unresolved territorial disputes resulting from India's 1947 Partition.
Siachen conflict (1984–2003)
The Siachen War, also known as the Siachen Glacier Battle or the Siachen War, was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan over the disputed Siachen Glacier region in Kashmir, which included an area of 1,000 square miles (2,600 km2). Operation Rajiv in 1987 carried on the fight that had begun in 1984 with India's successful seizure of the Siachen Glacier as part of Operation Meghdoot. India seized all of the major passes and heights of the Saltoro Ridge directly west of the Siachen Glacier, including Sia La, Bilafond La, and Gyong La, as well as the 70-kilometer (43-mile) Siachen Glacier and its tributary glaciers. The glacier valleys directly west of the Saltoro Ridge are under Pakistani control.
India-Pakistan conflict (2025)
The 2025 India–Pakistan conflict was a short-lived military confrontation that started on May 7, 2025, when India launched Operation Sindoor, a series of missile attacks on Pakistan. According to India, the operation was a reaction to the militants' Pahalgam attack in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22, which claimed the lives of 26 people, primarily tourists. As India accused Pakistan of aiding cross-border terrorism, which Pakistan denied, the attack heightened tensions between the two countries.
India claims that no military installations in Pakistan were targeted by the missile strikes of Operation Sindoor, which instead targeted the camps and infrastructure of the extremist organizations Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. Pakistan claims that 31 Pakistani citizens were killed in Indian strikes that targeted civilian places, including mosques. Drone strikes and border skirmishes between the two nations followed these strikes. Targeting many Indian military installations, Pakistan began Operation Bunyan al-Marsus on May 10. India also carried out Operation Sindoor in retaliation, broadening its purview to include targeting Pakistani military targets. This was the first time the two nuclear-armed countries engaged in drone combat.
Following three days of fighting, India and Pakistan declared that a ceasefire had been reached, with negotiations scheduled for May 12 and an effective date of 5:00 p.m. IST/04:30 p.m. PKT (11:30 UTC) on May 10. Both nations accused one another of breaking the ceasefire agreement after the deadline.