Escalating Tensions: Pakistan Closes Airspace to Indian Carriers, Cuts Trade Ties

 

In a dramatic escalation of regional tensions, Pakistan has shut down its airspace to Indian airlines and suspended all trade with New Delhi, effective immediately. The decision, handed down following an emergency meeting of the National Security Committee in Islamabad on Thursday, marks a sharp deterioration in bilateral relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

This retaliatory stance comes on the heels of India’s decision to scale back diplomatic ties and put a longstanding water-sharing treaty on ice—a move prompted by a recent, bloody terrorist attack in Indian-administered Kashmir.

“Pakistan categorically rejects the unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty,” read a fiery statement from Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif’s office. “Any attempt by India to block or divert Pakistan’s rightful share of water under this treaty will be considered an Act of War, to which we will respond with full force.” The statement also noted that the treaty provides no legal pathway for unilateral withdrawal or suspension.

The measures unveiled by Pakistan are sweeping. Not only is Indian air traffic now barred from Pakistani airspace, but all trade routes—direct and indirect—are now closed. That includes shipments to and from third countries traversing Pakistan’s borders.

Further deepening the freeze, Islamabad has suspended all visas issued to Indian nationals under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme. All Indians in Pakistan under this program—barring Sikh pilgrims—must leave within 48 hours.

Diplomatic fallout was swift and severe. India’s defense, naval, and air attachés stationed in Islamabad have been declared persona non grata. Pakistan also demanded the Indian High Commission slash its diplomatic staff to just 30 individuals by April 30.

These moves mirror actions taken by India the previous day, following a grisly terrorist attack in Kashmir’s picturesque Baisaran Valley, also known as ‘mini Switzerland’. The attack, which killed 26 people—primarily tourists—and wounded dozens more, has been blamed on The Resistance Front, a militant group believed to have ties with Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba.

India, in a stern rebuke, stated its punitive measures would remain in place “until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures support for cross-border terrorism.”

Islamabad, for its part, has flatly denied any involvement. Instead, it flipped the narrative, accusing New Delhi of leveraging tragedy to advance its political aims and of subjecting Kashmir’s Muslim-majority population to systemic oppression.

“In the absence of credible investigation and verifiable evidence,” said the Prime Minister’s office, “India’s attempt to link the Pahalgam attack to Pakistan is not only baseless—it is irrational, illogical, and clearly opportunistic.”

The statement went further, alleging that India’s recurring claims of victimhood are a smokescreen: “They cannot obscure New Delhi’s own role in exporting terror to Pakistani soil or distract from the brutal human rights violations being perpetrated under state sanction.”

A Region on the Brink

Kashmir remains, as ever, a geopolitical tinderbox. Both India and Pakistan claim the region in full, yet govern only parts. Over decades, it has morphed from a territorial dispute into a crucible of nationalism, ideology, and unresolved trauma. With every cycle of violence, the chasm grows wider.

And now, with diplomatic bridges burned, treaties crumbling, and airspace closed, the stakes are no longer just rhetorical—they're tangible, ominous, and edging dangerously close to the point of no return.