TheIslamabad–New Delhi hotline is a system that allows direct communication between the leaders ofIndia andPakistan. The hotline, according to the media sources, was established in 1971, shortly after the end of the1971 war.[1][2] The hotline linked thePrime minister's Office in Islamabad viaDirectorate-General of Military Operations (DGMO) toSecretariat Building inNew Delhi.
The hotline has seldom been used by the military leadership ofIndia andPakistan, even at the time of anescalation of tension. It is also calledHotline Linkage.[1] In regard to theMoscow–Washington hotline model, the hotline serves the purpose, as both technological and strategic rationale, for establishing the link between two countries.[1] The Islamabad–Delhi hotline is a secure communication link over which many procedural operations are obtained in different formats.
According to the Indian media sources, the hotline was established by the governments ofIndia andPakistan shortly after the end of the1971 war. The foreign ministries ofIndia andPakistan signed the mutual agreement for the implementation of the hotline.[3] The hotline was modelled directly on theMoscow–Washington hotline which was established in 1963.[1] The hotline became operational in the 1970s after both countries' foreign ministries transmitted the messages.[1]
The first usage of the hotline was in 1991 between the militaries of India and Pakistan to work on confidence-building measures.[2] The second usage of the hotline was in 1997, when both countries informed each other on trade issues.[2] In 1998, when both countries had publicly conductednuclear tests (Pokhran-II,Chagai-I &Chagai-II), the hotline was extensively used between the leaders of both countries.[4] Since 2005, the hotline has been used by each country to inform the other of their nuclear missile tests in the region.[5]
In 2011, Indian and Pakistani authorities agreed to create an anti-terrorism hotline.[6]
A cyber warfare hotline was established.[citation needed][when?]
An agreement to establish a hotline to reduce the risk ofnuclear warfare was made on 20 June 2004 between Indian and Pakistani authorities. The hotline was aimed for providing warnings about incidents that could be misinterpreted as nuclear attacks.[7]
In association with the 10 May 2025ceasefire of the 2025 India–Pakistan conflict, military hotlines were "activated".[8]
