♤ 1989 - Armed insurgency the Kashmir valley begins. Muslim political actors, after accusing the state government of rigging the 1987 state legislative elections, form militant wings.

♤ In 1991 - The two countries signed agreements on providing advance notification of military exercises, manoeuvres and troop movements, as well as on preventing airspace violations and establishing overflight rules.

♤ A joint declaration prohibiting the use of chemical weapons is signed in New Delhi in 1992.

♤ In 1998 India detonates five nuclear devices at Pokhran. Pakistan responds by detonating six nuclear devices of its own in the Chaghai Hills. The tests result in international sanctions being placed on both countries. In the same year, both countries carry out tests of long-range missiles.

♤ 1999 - Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee meets with Nawaz Sharif, his Pakistani counterpart, in Lahore. The two sign the Lahore Declaration, the first major agreement between the two countries since the 1972 Simla Agreement. Both countries reaffirm their commitment to the Simla Accord, and agree to undertake a number of 'Confidence Building Measures' (CBMs).

♤ Some of the diplomatic gains are eroded, however, after the Kargil conflict breaks out in May 1999. Pakistani forces occupy strategic positions on the Indian side of the LoC, prompting an Indian counter offensive in which they are pushed back to the other side of the original LoC. Kargil was the first armed conflict between the two neighbours since they officially conducted nuclear weapons tests.

♤ In October 1999, General Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistani chief of army staff, leads a military coup, deposing Nawaz Sharif, the then prime minister, and installing himself as the head of the government.

♤ Hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight-IC 814 in Indian airspace by members of Harkat-ul- Mujahideen, a Pakistan-based extremist group, highlighted Pakistan’s role in the supporting terrorism against India.

♤ 2001 - Tensions along the Line of Control remain high, with 38 people killed in an attack on the Kashmiri assembly in Srinagar. In July, Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf meet for a two-day summit at Agra. That summit collapses after two days, with both sides unable to reach agreement on the issue of Kashmir. On December 13, an armed attack on the Indian parliament in New Delhi leaves 14 people dead. India blames Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad for the attacks. The attacks lead to a mobilization of India's (referred to as Operation Parakram) and Pakistan's militaries along the LoC. The standoff only ends in October 2002, after international mediation.