More than 24 hours after the announcement of the ceasefire, India may have felt that the overall situation was basically settled, so it finally held a press conference on May 11 with the participation of the commanders of the navy, army, and air force. At the press conference, the generals sat in a row and confidently accepted interviews. Once the press conference ended, judging from the performance of Indian netizens, they were even more convinced: we won.

One: The Generals' "Ambiguity"

In this press conference, Air Force Lieutenant General AK Bharti's words were cryptic. He emphasized: "We achieved our selected objectives, and all pilots returned home." When asked how many Pakistani aircraft India's air force had shot down, this lieutenant general pretended to be profound, saying: "It is certain that we shot down several, but I don't want to reveal the specific number for now. Please trust us that we did cause damage." Afterward, he stopped answering similar loss-related questions.

Army Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai's words were also very vague. However, he was the only one among the generals who admitted significant losses. He said: "We mourn the five members of the armed forces and civilians who tragically lost their lives in the operation!" In recent days, details of India's losses have been gradually revealed, but the sacrifice of these five personnel has rarely been mentioned. This indicates that there are more situations we do not know about beyond what online media has disclosed.

This time around, the Indian Navy was largely on the periphery, but Navy Lieutenant General AN Pramod still believed that the Navy had made great contributions. He emphasized: "India's aircraft carrier strike group, submarines, surface fleet, etc., were all fully prepared and played a decisive deterrent role."

These words of the navy lieutenant general sounded confident but contradicted some previous statements by Indian media. Previously, Indian media reported that the navy had joined the fight, transitioning from exercises to actual combat, successfully striking multiple Pakistani targets. But now, this lieutenant general did not confirm that the navy had directly engaged in fire, only emphasizing the deterrence effect. And due to commercial satellites monitoring, India's aircraft carrier situation cannot be faked either. Since April 22 when tensions escalated, India's aircraft carrier indeed went out to sea but quickly returned.

Two: Both India and Pakistan Believe They Won

From the speeches of the three generals above, it can be said that the styles of the military forces of both countries are really different. Pakistan prefers to use facts to prove its results, such as releasing audio recordings of Indian pilots during combat, while India is unwilling to disclose more information. Some comments believe that India does this not only because of nervousness but also to preserve the face of some countries. For example, regarding the loss of the Rafale fighter jets, the French government has already intervened in the investigation. If India wants to continue doing business with France in the future, it cannot say too much now.

Since both sides believe they won, which side requested the ceasefire? Regarding this, the renowned American media CNN obtained information from informed sources, revealing the bottom line of Modi's administration.

CNN cited informed sources, stating that after realizing they could no longer continue fighting, the Modi government promptly sought help from the United States and Turkey, hoping they would mediate. This is why the Trump administration initially said it wouldn't intervene but later decisively got involved. However, CNN did not disclose what benefits Modi offered Trump to make him willing to intervene. CNN only stated that shortly after Modi made his request, US Secretary of State Rubio quickly contacted both India and Pakistan.

As for why Pakistan agreed to the ceasefire, CNN did not disclose it. Comments believe that Pakistan's choice was wise. After all, judging from comprehensive national strength and overall troop numbers, Pakistan does not have a significant advantage. If dragged into a protracted war with India, many things would become difficult to handle. Therefore, knowing when to stop was the wisest choice for Pakistan.

Three: Will India and Pakistan Be at Peace From Now On?

Without a doubt, the long-standing contradictions between India and Pakistan will not end just because of one conflict. At this critical moment, the two sides still have an important issue unresolved: how to implement the next steps of the Indus Waters Treaty. Both sides have yet to reach an agreement. In 1960, the two countries reached this treaty, but in fact, India has repeatedly violated it. During the current tense situation in India, India at least three times used water resources as a provocation.

However, in the past 48 hours, Indian media have confirmed: several large dams in India have opened their gates to release water. The reason is that it is the rainy season recently, with heavy rainfall causing reservoirs to reach their storage limits, forcing them to open the gates. If Pakistan wants to thoroughly solve this problem in the future, it must sit down and negotiate with the other side. If necessary, a third party may need to be introduced as a witness.

In the end, the dispute between India and Pakistan over the years has been clear to both sides, and neither side should pretend to be fierce. Let's continue to follow what happens next.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7503343973939937828/

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