Tag: Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars

(CNN)During Pakistan's national election campaign last year, Imran Khan was dismissed by detractors as a political lightweight and foreign policy novice who relied on populism and deference to the country's influential military for support. Now, just over six months into his role as Prime Minister, those claims are being tested, as Khan finds his country closer to war with its nuclear-armed neighbor, India, than at any point in the past 20 years. India blamed the attack on a Pakistan-based militant group, Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), and said Pakistan itself had a "direct hand" in it. Tensions escalated even more this week, with an Indian airstrike on Pakistani soil, followed by retaliatory measures by Pakistani forces that resulted in the capture of an Indian pilot. "In Pakistan there's nothing like aggression from India to rally the people," he said. However, Kugelman said this is a political test for Khan, who formed his own party 23 years ago. "Now the ball is in (India Prime Minister Narendra) Modi's court. "(The military is) pro-conflict. "We've seen what has happened with previous Pakistani prime ministers who have not been supplicant to military -- they haven't been able to accomplish anything," Pakistan journalist Rafia Zakaria said. And that will be a test of his relationship with the military."