Vikrant Shekhawat : Aug 25, 2024, 04:40 PM
PM Modi Ukraine Tour: According to a recent report in Pakistani media, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's plane remained in Pakistan's airspace for 46 minutes while returning from his visit to Poland and Ukraine. This incident has created a stir in Pakistan's civil aviation authority and political circles. According to reports, during this visit, Prime Minister Modi used Pakistan's airspace without any prior notice or goodwill message, which has started a new discussion on the already tense relations between the two countries.Prime Minister Modi's flight: A brief analysisPakistani media says that PM Modi's flight while returning from Poland passed through Pakistan's airspace over Islamabad and Lahore. According to this report, PM Modi's plane entered Pakistan from Chitral and flew over Islamabad and Lahore while heading towards Amritsar. During this, Pakistan's Civil Aviation Authority did not give any specific reaction to this visit.Aviation industry sources say that goodwill messages are a tradition, but it is not a legal requirement. Sources also said that PM Modi does not require special permission to use the airspace. It can be allotted a call sign, as is the case with other heads of state.Pakistan Airspace: Historical ContextPakistan had closed its airspace for Indian aircraft since the Balakot air strike in 2019. This move had further escalated tensions between the two countries. Pakistan partially opened its airspace for some time in March 2019, but kept it restricted for Indian aircraft. Due to this position, Pakistan had also rejected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's request for airspace use for his flight to Germany.However, two years later Pakistan allowed the Indian Prime Minister's non-stop flight to the US to pass through its airspace. This incident shows that the dependence and permission policy on air traffic between Pakistan and India has been changing from time to time.Current situation and future prospectsPrime Minister Narendra Modi's 46-minute journey into Pakistan's airspace has raised important questions from a political and military perspective between the two countries. It has made it clear that the practices of airspace permission and special consent are still complex and sensitive.This incident adds a new complexity to the bilateral relationship between Pakistan and India, which will require greater caution and transparency in the future. Both countries need to reconsider air traffic and security protocols so that such situations can be avoided in the future and bilateral relations can be improved.