[ti:Pakistan Releases Indian Pilot] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.01]Pakistan returned a captured Indian pilot to his country on Friday. [00:07.21]Pakistani officials described the move as a "gesture of peace." [00:13.46]The action temporarily reduced tensions [00:17.66]between the two sides over the disputed Kashmir area. [00:23.24]The pilot, Abhinandan Varthaman, [00:27.28]was seen walking across the border near the town of Wagah [00:32.27]just before 1600 Universal Time (UTC). [00:36.15]Indian officials then confirmed he had been returned. [00:42.42]His return to India came after a series [00:46.57]of cross-border attacks in Kashmir this week. [00:51.68]On Tuesday, Indian aircraft entered Pakistan air space [00:58.25]to attack what India described [01:01.55]as a camp of the Islamist militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad. [01:07.75]The group had claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing [01:13.07]in Indian Kashmir on February 14. [01:17.92] The explosion killed at least 40 paramilitary troops. [01:24.36]Both India and Pakistan claim they shot down enemy airplanes on Wednesday. [01:32.39]Varthaman was captured when his plane crashed in a Pakistan-controlled area. [01:39.98]The two countries have fought three wars [01:44.72]since gaining independence from Britain in 1947. [01:51.34]Two of the wars were fought over Kashmir. [01:55.61]Located high in the Himalayan Mountains, [01:59.84]Kashmir borders China to the northeast, [02:03.97]India to the south and Pakistan to the west. [02:09.29]The area is about 222,000 square kilometers in size. [02:16.76]But its exact border has always been poorly defined. [02:22.52]Over the years, a series of rulers introduced Buddhist, Hindu, [02:30.44]Muslim and Sikh cultures to Kashmir. [02:33.32]When the British withdrew in 1947, Hari Singh, [02:38.78]the Hindu ruler over Kashmir, [02:41.26]delayed a decision to join Muslim Pakistan or Hindu-majority India. [02:48.67] The move was part of an effort to remain independent. [02:53.59]As the majority Muslim population of Kashmir rebelled, [02:58.79]Singh chose to join India. [03:01.37]This led to the first Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. [03:08.54]A year later, the two nations agreed to a ceasefire. [03:13.60]The agreement called for Pakistan to withdraw its troops [03:19.20]and for India to keep a small military presence. [03:24.38]It also called for a popular vote for Kashmiris to decide their future. [03:31.53]But Pakistan did not pull back its troops and a vote was never held. [03:37.80]In 1962, China overpowered Indian forces [03:43.54]to capture a small area along its border with Kashmir. [03:48.71]Heavy fighting between India and Pakistan broke out in 1965 and again in 1971. [03:58.95]With Pakistan's defeat, the two nations signed an agreement [04:04.71]to establish East Pakistan as the independent nation of Bangladesh. [04:11.49]The agreement also established a Line of Control, [04:16.41]effectively dividing Kashmir into two areas. [04:21.64]Tens of thousands of Indian and Pakistani soldiers [04:26.21]have since faced off along the Line of Control [04:30.42]and, at times, exchanged gunfire. [04:34.27]Behind the line, militants continue their attacks like the one [04:39.84]that brought the two nuclear-powered countries closer to another war. [04:45.51]I'm Ashley Thompson. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM