I refer to your editorial, 'A global affair' (South China Morning Post, August 3).
There is only a limited role the world at large can play to influence the newly declared nuclear states of India and Pakistan.
It is important to note that for both India and Pakistan, the nuclear option was more of a domestic issue than anything else.
The Indian Government headed by the Hindu fundamentalist BJP was finding it difficult to keep its minority government together and used the nuclear explosion as a diversion.
Pakistan had no option but to retaliate in order to placate the masses and the opposition. The fact remains that nothing much has changed since May 13 when the blasts took place and the same governments are clinging to power and are in no mood to take any long-term measures to ensure peace and stability, since they themselves are fighting for short-term survival, whether political in the case of the BJP, or economic as in the case of Pakistan.
Any global pressure is likely to be half-hearted due to vested business interests that would prevent any meaningful sanctions and would only help the politicians play up jingoistic sentiments, thus making a bad situation even worse.
