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.

[edit] Historical examples

[edit] 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.

[edit] 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 and South Korea at war.

[edit] Kashmir conflict

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

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

[edit] 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]

[edit] Spanish government - ETA

ETA has declared several ceasfires 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.

[edit] See also

• Armistice
• Peace treaty

[edit] References

Look up ceasefire in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

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