First India and then Pakistan successfully detonated nuclear weapons. The international community condemned the tests and levied economic sanctions on the feuding neighbors.

1999

Pakistani-led troops, including a unit headed by current President Pervez Musharraf, crossed the border into Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee launched counter-attack air strikes to push out the Pakistani army.

Pakistan asserted it was fighting for Kashmir's liberation while India maintained its control of southern portion of the province was legitimate.

The conflict subsided when Pakistani President Nawaz Sharif ordered the army to withdraw to its side of the line of control.

The leaders officially ended fighting with the Lahore Declaration, which stressed that both countries must respect the line of control.

Terrorists hijacked an Indian flight bound for Katmandu, Nepal and demanded the release of members of Kashmiri separatist groups, such as the Jaish-e-Mohammad leader, Maulana Masood Azhar.

The 155 people trapped aboard the plane were released after eight days, while the hijackers escaped. Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee blamed Pakistan for supporting the hijacking; Pakistan rejected those claims as untrue and "very irresponsible."