Part of: GS-Mains II – Indian and its neighbours; International Relations
In news:
The Indo-Pak relations took another dip when both countries decided to slash their staff by 50 percent at their missions in Islamabad and New Delhi.
The move comes after incidents of staffers from Pakistan High Commission being involved in espionage and terror funding came to fore.
Pak High Commission’s direct involvement in Terror Funding
New Delhi said Pakistani officials in India had “engaged in acts of espionage and maintained dealings with terrorist organisations”.
India also said Pakistani officials’ conduct was a violation of the Vienna Convention and “an intrinsic element of a larger policy of supporting cross-border violence and terrorism”.
Do you know?
Pakistan had unilaterally downgraded diplomatic relations after India scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status last August and expelled the Indian high commissioner from Islamabad.
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries.
Ties between India and Pakistan have been severely strained over the past few years and have worsened with recent incidents of firing at the border and terror strikes in Kashmir.
