ABSTRACT
A dramatic event took place in the spring of 1999 along the ‘line of control’ that separates Pakistani-controlled territory from Indian-controlled territory in the Himalayan region of Kashmir. India counter-attacked with thousands of infantry and artillery troops, and was ultimately forced to bring the Indian Air Force into action against invaders who were well entrenched in the heights of Kargil. Pakistan had miscalculated the downside risks in proceeding with the Kargil Operation. The coup de grace was administered by the United States, a country with which Pakistan had a ‘special relationship’ going back to the early 1950s, and which had supplied it with its most sophisticated military hardware. The Pakistani army later conferred medals on several officers and soldiers involved in the Kargil campaign, removing any doubt about its involvement in the war. Pakistan said the plane has been on a routine training mission.
