The IUP Journal of International Relations
The Listing of Masood Azhar: A Theoretical Perspective

Article Details
Pub. Date : June, 2020
Product Name : The IUP Journal of International Relations
Product Type : Article
Product Code : IJIR022020
Author Name : Gautam Kainoor Rajesh, and Madhumati Deshpande
Availability : YES
Subject/Domain : Arts & Humanities
Download Format : PDF Format
No. of Pages : 17

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Abstract

The listing of Masood Azhar as a UN-designated terrorist is essentially a series of events, but this paper has brought them under the format of a single case study. Masood Azhar, and others like him, was the answer that Pakistan had reached to succeed where decades of conventional wars had failed. China's entry into this equation made the situation even more complex. China made common cause with Pakistan regarding Kashmir against India. It was, as a result, complicit in Pakistan's Kashmir terrorism strategy. India, on multiple occasions, had attempted to get Masood Azhar listed under the Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) but failed to do so due to opposition from China. This case best illustrates the close and often complex relationship that China has with Pakistan. However, this seemingly irrational strategy of both Pakistan and China is based on sound tactical knowledge. The Realist Theory and Rational Choice Theory of International Relations are used to illustrate this. By using these theories, this paper attempts to declutter the often obscure motives of China and Pakistan.


Introduction

The case of the listing of Masood Azhar as a terrorist by the United Nations (UN) is a series of events which have been brought under a single case study. Masood Azhar is the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed, a Pakistan-based terrorist group which was responsible for several terror attacks in the Indian state (now Union Territory) of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere in India. The rivalry between India and Pakistan was the cause of much suffering for both countries. Born from the bitterness of the Partition of British India in 1947, the two countries have fought four wars with each other (or three wars, if the 'un-official' Kargil War of 1999 is excluded).1 The centerpiece of this conflict was the unresolved dispute surrounding the State of Jammu and Kashmir, which both countries claim as theirs. But the political boundaries


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