Pakistan suspends trade with India and closes its airspace

Pakistan has officially suspended trade with India, including goods transiting through Pakistan and those from any other nation. The Asif Ali Zardari-led country also closed its land borders and shut its airspace to all airlines owned and operated by India. 

Mr. Asif Ali Zardari’s country announced that it has shut its airspace to all Indian airlines and those operated by the nation. The Islamic nation has also halted all its trade with India. Pakistan announced that the suspension affects all goods passing through the country and those from third nations. As a result of the airspace closure, Air India said that all flights to the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and North America would have to take a longer alternative route. 

Pakistan announces punitive measures targeting India

Amidst the growing tensions between the two nations, Pakistan had announced suspension of trade with India. The Asif Ali Zardari-led nation clarified that the suspension of trade included goods passing through from third countries.  Pakistan also said it has shut its airspace to all the airlines owned or operated by India. 

Following the closure of the Pakistan airspace, Air India has said that flights would take longer alternative routes. Air India confirmed that the affected flights included those heading to Europe, North America, the Middle East, and the United Kingdom. In a similar move, Pakistan said it had canceled all visas under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme, which enables some travelers to possess a ‘Special Travel’ credential exempting them from visas.  

Mr Asif Ali Zardari’s country clarified that Sikh religious pilgrims were exempted from the visa cancellation. Indian citizens living in Pakistan under the SVES were instructed to leave the country within 48 hours. The country also said that the Indian Defence, Air Advisers, and Naval Officers in Islamabad were ordered to leave by April 30th. Pakistan also announced that the posts in the Indian High Commission were nullified, and the support staff of the officials were ordered to return home. 

Pakistan said that it was concerned about the loss of lives of tourists and denied involvement in the Tuesday terror attack. It also described the punitive measures taken by Indians as unjust, unilateral, irresponsible, politically motivated, and devoid of any legal merit. The country also admitted that Kashmir remains an unresolved dispute. The country condemned all forms of terrorist attacks and also rejected India’s measures. Mr Asif Ali Zardari-led country said that in the absence of an investigation and evidence, any attempts to link the terror attacks with Pakistan were frivolous and devoid of rationality.

India blames Pakistan for Tuesday’s Kashmir attack

India will identify, track and punish every terrorist, their handlers and their backers.

We will pursue them to the ends of the earth.

India’s spirit will never be broken by terrorism. pic.twitter.com/sV3zk8gM94

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 24, 2025

India has blamed its neighbor for the terror attack in Pahalgam, a renowned tourist destination in Kashmir, which both nations claim as their territory. The Indian authorities said that 24 of the victims of the terror assault were Indians. One of the people killed was a local tourist guide, and another was from Nepal. 

Indian authorities said that the Kashmir terror attack is the worst in many years, aimed at civilians. Many local shops and businesses in the affected area closed to protest the killing of the tourists. On Wednesday, Vikram Misri, India’s foreign secretary, said that Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, summoned an emergency cabinet meeting. In the meeting, the Indian leaders decided that the terror attack had some cross-border connections to their neighboring nation, Pakistan, without offering any evidence. 

Mr Misri said the land border between the two nations would be shut. He also said that the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, under which the two nations jointly manage a river system crucial to both, would be put on hold until Pakistan ceased to support cross-border terror attacks. Some diplomats had been asked to leave New Delhi amidst the growing tensions between the two nations. Indian diplomats were also recalled from the neighboring country.

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