Closed Six Decades

22 October 2008



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Kashmir Trade Route Reopened

India and Pakistan have fought three wars against each other. They both possess nuclear weapons. Their relations affect every person on this planet because a nuclear exchange between them would finish the job global warming has begun. Yesterday, the world got some good news when a trade route between the two in Kashmir opened for the first time in six decades.

Kashmir is the flash point between the two nations. Both claim Kashmir, and the loyalties of the people there are divided. This is further complicated by a faction in Kashmir that wants independence rather than union with Pakistan or India. Independence is the one option upon which India and Pakistan agree; both oppose it.

The BBC reported, “Trucks carrying fruit, nuts and honey were flagged off by Indian officials from Salamabad in Indian-administered Kashmir under tight security. Lorries are expected to arrive later on Tuesday from the Pakistani side, bringing rice, rock salt and furniture.” The Beeb also said, “Tuesday’s exchange of goods is seen as just as beginning, symbolically making the divide in Kashmir just a bit smaller. Traders hope the trade link - which will operate from both sides two times a week - will grow into something much more significant.”

The Beeb further explained, “Under the terms of the deal, lorry drivers from both sides are being issued single-entry permits to transport the goods. Drivers from the Indian side will offload their goods at Chakothi, from where they will be picked up by Pakistani lorries. Drivers from the Pakistani side will likewise drop their goods off at Salamabad, where they will be collected by Indian lorries. Trade is restricted for now to 21 items produced in the Kashmir region.” However, if the trade were liberalized, many economist say the all-weather road would see trade approaching the $6 billion level.

One of the ways conflict can be avoided in any dispute is through trade between the parties. War then becomes less likely because profits will be lost. That is one of the basic foundations of the European Union; nations that trade don’t fight. That is not entirely true, but true enough to be worth starting up and enhancing trade. Tuesday’s shipments have made everyone, even those who live on the other side of the world, a bit safer.

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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