Ceasefire

A ceasefire (or truce) is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces.

Contents

Historical examples

World War I

On December 24, 1914, there was an unofficial ceasefire as France, the United Kingdom, and Germany observed Christmas. No treaty was signed, and the war resumed after a few days.

Korean War

A ceasefire was reached on July 27, 1953, to halt the conflict and establish a demilitarized zone. However, no peace treaty has been signed to date, technically leaving North Korea at war with the United States and South Korea

Vietnam War

On January 15,1973, President Richard Nixon order a ceasefire to halt the aerial bombings in North Vietnam. The decision came after Dr Henry Kissinger, the National Security Affairs advisor to the president, returned to Washington from Paris France with a draft peace proposal. Combat missions continued in South Vietnam. By January 27, 1973, all warring parties in the Vietnam War sign a cease fire as a prelude to a Paris Peace Accord.

Kashmir conflict

Pakistan's government has repeatedly claimed that India is violating the Simla Agreement by constructing a fence along the Line of Conflict. However, India maintains that the fence has decreased armed infiltration into Indian-administered Kashmir.

Then-Pakistani President and ex-Army Chief of Staff Pervez Musharraf promised in 2002 to curb infiltration into the disputed territory.

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

A more recent example of a ceasefire was announced between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority on February 8, 2005. When announced, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat publicly defined the ceasefire as follows: "We have agreed that today President Mahmoud Abbas will declare a full cessation of violence against Israelis anywhere and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will declare a full cessation of violence and military activities against Palestinians anywhere."[1]

IRA - British government

Throughout the period of The Troubles the Provisional IRA and other paramilitary groups have called ceasefires. The most notable of these being the IRA ceasefire which was called on 31 August 1994 and ended on 9 February 1996 with the Docklands bombing. Another ceasefire was declared in July 1997 after negotiations were reopened.

Spanish government - ETA

ETA has declared several ceasefires during its long running campaign against the Spanish state. The latest ceasefire, which started in March 2006, was broken on December 30, 2006, when a car bomb exploded in Madrid killing two people.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Wedeman, Ben; Raz, Guy, Koppel, Andrea (2005-02-07). "Mideast cease-fire expected Tuesday". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/07/mideast/. Retrieved 2007-01-03. 
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