India must step back from the brink

For nearly 50 years third-party warfare with Pakistan has left an inedible mark on India .

The formation of Bangladesh in 1971 transformed the region as the new nation broke away from Pakistan .

Pakistan ’s leader, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto , announced in 1972 that his official policy would from that point on be the bleeding of India “by a thousand cuts”.

Recent terror attack in Kashmir has forced international attention back on to India ’s volatile neighbourhood.

Recent relations with China have been, at best, frosty.

Russia , in an unprecedented move, has allied with Pakistan , which in turn has strong ties with China .

India has been left to its own devices, which now threaten to become militaristic and war-like.