United Nations Military Observer Group India Pakistan (UNMOGIP)
V. 1.0 January 7, 2001
Source: www.un.org/Depts/DPKO/Missions/unmogip
The oldest of the United Nations' peacekeeping missions, UNMOGIP has been deployed since 1949 to monitor the cease-fire between India and Pakistan following the first Kashmir War (1947-48). Since 1972, India has refused to accept the legitimacy of UNMOGIP, but it continues to be deployed because the United Nations believes its mandate can be terminated only by the consent of both parties. While the movement of observers on the Indian side is restricted, India continues to provide the needed wherewithal for the Group to operate on the Indian side.
The Cease-Fire Line between the two adversaries was demarcated from NW605550 near Chaamb in the southwest to NJ980420 at the foot of the Saltoro Range in the northeast. An intriguing discrepancy in deployments is that the Group has seven field stations in Pakistan Kashmir, and only four in Indian Kashmir. Further, the Group has no field stations in North Kashmir on the Indian side. After 1971, fighting between the two adversaries has taken place primarily in North Kashmir, with the Siachin Glacier confrontation dating from 1984 to the present and the Kargil conflict in 1999.
The Chief Military Observer, Major-General Manuel Saavedra (Uruguay), heads the Group.
The Group's strength as of December 1, 2000 consists of 124 personnel:
The military observers are from:
The Group's HQ is at Islamabad, Pakistan between November and April, and at Srinager, Kashmir, India between May and October. Field Stations are at:
Indian Kashmir
Pakistan Kashmir
* Gilgit and Skardu are the main towns of the Northern Territories, a region of Kashmir that was put under Pakistan's direct rule and is considered, by Pakistan, to be no longer part of the disputed state.
A map of the deployment is available at http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/map/dpko/unmogip.pdf