ABSTRACT
The India-Pakistan crisis of 2001-2 was the latest in a series of crises and conflicts in South Asia, going back to 1986-7, in which nuclear weapons cast a shadow over decision-making. Judging by the state of relations between India and Pakistan and the intermittent nature of crisis and conflict between the two countries since 1987, military confrontation is distinctly possible in the future, indeed quite likely. Given that possibility, it is important to review what has been learned from the crises and conflicts of 2001-2. Should we be optimistic or pessimistic about the chances of containing and controlling military confrontation so that nuclear weapons are not used?
