Gilgit Baltistan shares common border with Afghanistan, Tajikistan, China, India, and Pakistan. As part of the Jammu and Kashmir, it is one of the most politically sensitive and geo-strategically positioned regions in the world , it is also referred to as the “high roof of the world” . It has historically remained a flash point of political and military rivalries amongst various empires particularly the Russian, Chinese and the British . It has always been at the crossroads of civilizations and influenced by conquerors, raiders and travelers. Its geo strategic significance can be gauged by its geographical proximity to the major powers of the region, its proximity to the Afghan border, the Chinese engagement and potential for economic growth …show more content…
The region is not only the meeting point of China, Central Asian Republics, Pakistan and India, but also provides sea access to land locked energy rich Central Asian Republics and an alternate route to the energy starved China . The region is infact poised at the crossroads of these three great civilizations. The ancient Silk Route which passed though this region was India’s and China’s gateway to Central Asia and Europe. The region encompasses the Karakoram, Hindukush and the North West Himalayas emanating from the Pamir mass in the North Gilgit-Baltistan and boasts of twelve out of the thirty highest peaks in the worlds including the second highest peak K2 at 8611m and Nanga Parbat, the third highest peak at 8125m. These mountain ranges therefore acted as the first tier defence line of the erstwhile Indian sub-continent. The region also boasts of three of the world’s largest glaciers outside the polar region namely, the Biafo, Baltoro and Batura glaciers, which form the area of headwaters of major rivers, including the mighty
Heller, A. (2007). Discoveries in western Tibet and the western Himalayas essays on history, literature, archaeology and art : PIATS 2003, Tibetan studies, proceedings of the Tenth Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Oxford, 2003. Leiden: Brill.
Geography played a big role in history and made each empire unique in its own way. Geography had positive and negative effects when it comes to location, access to resources, and trade. For the Spanish and Mongol Empires, geography played a role in state formation as well as affected their strategies of rule. Considering that the Mongol Empire began in the 11th century and the Spanish Empire in the 15th century, the affects that geography had were significantly different regarding their state formation and forms of ruling, however, there were some slight similarities in the process of building up their empires. Both the Mongol and Spanish Empires were similar in that they used trade as a mechanism for expansion and connection, however, they differed in that the Mongol Empire focused on conquering territory throughout the Afroeurasian landmass while the Spanish Empire devoted its attention to overseas territory.
... Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan. Stronger states such as the US waged war against weaker states such as Vietnam. Interestingly, the defeat of the United States in Vietnam and of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan indicates to a more intricate concept of power which is broader than mere financial or military strength. In fact, a lot of the current theories of international relations dispute that power as conventionally described by realists is intrinsically unclear and open to analysis based on particular state of affairs. Nevertheless, it can be successfully concluded that power is primarily associated with what a state can stop another state from doing to it and what a state can do. The ways by which power is executed may be changing, yet the fundamental nature of competing desires and interests remain predominant in defining the international relations.
With the Hindu Kush being 7, 692 meters in height and an essential geographical defense, leading imperialist powers such as the British Empire and the Czarist Russia race to seize Afghanistan. On two separate occasions, British troops from India were able to enter into the country and establish puppet governments for economic reasons. This phase of Afghanistan history is known as “the Great Game.” However, those who existed at this time frame would not simply word it as “a game”. People of invaded regions underwent devastating states of material destruction and poverty.
India and China however, were landlocked and were by far the greatest industrial powers in the world till the Industrial revolution. Technology, not geography, helped temperate agriculture and industry to zoom ahead. One way a country overcomes geographical isolation is to improve its transportation infrastructure. Better roads, ports, paths, and other modes of transport provide access to world markets. But a country can only derive full benefits from these investments against a backdrop of good trade and macroeconomic policies. Consequently this leads to the belief that people again control the thought of their own geography.
India is Sri Lanka’s closest neighbor and natural ally with its historic, cultural and linguistic similarities. Relationship between Indian and Sri Lanka is highly matured considering the asymmetric differences and India’s consistent commitment towards Sri Lankan policy. In this decade, India and Sri Lanka build a very strong relationship and came to close contacts at the highest level in terms of politics, growing trade and investment, cooperation in the fields of development, education, culture and defense, and understanding on major issues of international interest. Though there is some turbulence in Indo-Sri Lankan relations particularly with domestic politics playing a new dynamics in relationship between neighboring countries. In a vast
Indian sub-continent was a British colony for close to two hundred years. After the Second World War faced with intense independence movement in India led my Mohandas Gandhi, the British government decided to leave India. As the British left India, they broke the subcontinent into different countries based mainly on religion and ethnicity. The countries were, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan (Picture of Indian subcontinent). Among the countries, Pakistan was created with unique setting. It had two wings, East and West Pakistan separated by one thousand miles of Indian Territory (Picture of East and West Pakistan). Only thing that bound the people in East and West Pakistan was their religion, Islam. They had different culture, different language, and different history.
Ladakh is found in the northeast of India in the Indus valley basin. It is an administrtive
Khan, Yasmin. The Great Partition: The Making of India and Pakistan. New Haven: Yale UP, 2007. Print.
India and Pakistan not only share a common border but are also parties to a
Punjab, state in northwestern India,bordered on the north by Jammu and Kashmir state and Himachal Pradesh state, on the east and south by Haryana state, on the south and southwest by Rajasthan state, and on the west by Pakistan.
Sri Lanka’s physical geography has some similarities throughout the country, but there is also a great deal of diversity. Sri Lanka consists of, “Three zones are distinguishable by elevation: the Central Highlands, the plains, and the costal belt” (Ross & Savada, 1988, p. 61). While these zone’s physical characteristics differ as a result of altitude, in general, most of Sri Lanka is relatively flat, according to Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia (2013), “About four fifths of the island is flat or gently rolling” (para. 2). In fact, the majority of Sri Lanka is made up of plains which are between approximately 98 to 656 feet above sea level (Ross &. Savada, 1988). Although most of Sri Lanka consists of plains, in areas such as the Central Highlands these plains are dotted with several mountains; the most well-known being Adam’s Peak at 7, 356 feet. While Adam’s Peak is most well known as a result of numerous religious traditions, the largest mountain is actually the Pidurutalagala which is considered the highest point in Sri Lanka at 8,278 feet. Sri Lanka also has several rivers which are seen mainly in the Central Highlands, the longest being the, “Mahaweli Ganga at 208 miles” (Cavendish, 1990, ...
Pakistan shares 650 miles of coastline on the Arabian Sea and with the Gulf of Oman. The west is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran. India is in the east of Pakistan and China touches Pakistan border in the far northeast. The country is advantageously located between South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East. Pakistan is a land of valuable natural resources. Pakistan is one of the most well-known richest country in Natural resources in the world. Pakistan has many natural resources such as Oil, Gas, coal, water, gemstones, copper, uranium, gold, salt, Chromite, and agricultural land
Concepts like security and insecurity are often associated with corridors. A corridor is never considered to be fully secure since most of the times it is surrounded by two or more external powers. This makes them vulnerable. Such is the case with the Siliguri Corridor in the North Eastern Region (NER) of India. It is a narrow strip of land in West Bengal which connects North East India to the rest of the country. The corridor is squeezed between two of India’s neighbours, namely, Nepal and Bangladesh and has a width of 13 to 25 miles.
The conflict between India and Pakistan, two nations united by history but divided by destiny, runs deep. Their rivalries over five decades have prevented both countries from realizing their full economic and geopolitical potential. Most of the noted political scientists and leaders on both sides of the borders feel that the Kashmir issue is the major cause of this rivalry. Kashmir is small region in north India; a part of the Jammu and Kashmir state i.e. the northern most state in India, nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, the Kashmir region is of great strategic importance and beauty which makes a very prized possession. Kashmir was controlled by the Durrani Empire of Afghanistan during the mughal rule in India, later taken over by the Sikh empire under maharaja ranjit Singh in the mid 19th century and further sold to maharaja gulab Singh by the British. Thus four takeovers of the state within three centuries show how important the valley of Kashmir was for the leaders of the Indian sub-continent. The reason for this importance is the fact that apart from its high snow-clad mountains, scenic spots, beautiful valleys, rivers with ice-cold water, attractive lakes and springs and ever-green fields, dense forests and beautiful health resorts, which enhance its grandeur and are a source of great attraction for tourists, Kashmir also shares contiguous boundaries wit...