Pakistan Map with Kashmir: The Complete Guide
The official map, the LoC, the Working Boundary — Pakistan’s borders explained.
Last updated: 11 October 2026
The Essentials
Pakistan Map with Kashmir at a Glance
The map in four facts.
4 August 2020
The Official Map
Pakistan’s cartographic position.
On 4 August 2020 — a year after India’s Article 370 move — PM Imran Khan unveiled Pakistan’s new political map, endorsed by the cabinet, opposition and Kashmiri leadership. It shows: all of Jammu & Kashmir as Pakistani territory; Siachen included (LoC extended to the Karakoram Pass, marked red-dotted); the Indian-held side labelled “Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir” with the note “Disputed Territory — final status to be decided in line with relevant UNSC resolutions”; the China frontier marked “Frontier Undecided”; Sir Creek’s line on the eastern bank; and Junagadh claimed. This is the map used in Pakistani schools and official documents.
The politics of the unveiling mattered: the map was released on Youm-e-Istehsal (the Day of Exploitation), Pakistan’s annual commemoration of India’s 5 August 2019 move — and it was the first Pakistani political map to be formally endorsed by all stakeholders: the federal cabinet, the opposition, and the Kashmiri leadership together. That consensus is why the map has survived changes of government since.
The De Facto Border
Line of Control on the Map
~740km of history.
The Line of Control — ~740km (some sources say 776km) — divides the Pakistani and Indian-held parts of Kashmir. Born as the 1949 ceasefire line (Karachi Agreement, after the first Kashmir war), renamed the LoC by the Simla Agreement (2 July 1972) after the 1971 war. Its northernmost point: NJ9842 — beyond it, the Siachen Glacier, contested since 1984. South of the LoC, the Punjab–Jammu line is the “Working Boundary” (Pakistan’s term) — India calls it an international border. The LoC is not a legal international boundary — it’s a military control line.
The Territory
The Two Kashmirs
Administered, not owned.
Pakistani side: Azad Jammu & Kashmir (capital Muzaffarabad — self-governing) and Gilgit-Baltistan (the northern areas, K2’s home). Indian side: the union territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh (since India’s 2019 reorganisation). Pakistan’s position: the entire former princely state is disputed territory; its people were promised a plebiscite under UNSC resolutions — a vote never held. Three wars (1947–48, 1965, 1971) and Kargil (1999) were fought over it.
The Perimeter
Pakistan’s Borders
Every frontier.
| Border | Length | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| India (east) | 2,912km | LoC (~740km) + Working Boundary + International Border |
| Afghanistan (west) | 2,430km | The Durand Line (1893) — Kabul disputes it |
| Iran (southwest) | 909km | Peaceful, trade-focused |
| China (north) | 523km | Khunjerab Pass; 1963 boundary agreement |
Total land area: 881,913 km² — the world’s 33rd-largest country.
The Divisions
Provinces on the Map
Four provinces, two territories, one capital.
Balochistan (largest: 347,190 km², 44% of the country) · Punjab (most populous: ~127 million per the 2023 census) · Sindh (Karachi’s home) · Khyber Pakhtunkhwa · Gilgit-Baltistan (~72,971 km² — larger than Azad Kashmir six times over, home to K2 and the great glaciers) · Azad Jammu & Kashmir (~13,297 km² — a narrow 400km strip, 15–65km wide, capital Muzaffarabad) · Islamabad Capital Territory. The map’s message: from the Arabian Sea to K2, one country.
A note on the numbers: Pakistan’s official total of 881,913 km² includes Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. International references like the CIA World Factbook, which treat the disputed areas separately, list 803,940 km². Neither figure is “wrong” — they answer different questions: Pakistan’s claimed territory vs the internationally undisputed portion. The 1,046km coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman is common to both.
1947–2020
How the Map Changed
The cartographic story.
1947: Partition — the Radcliffe Line draws Pakistan; Kashmir’s Hindu Maharaja accedes to India against his Muslim-majority population’s wishes; war; the 1949 ceasefire line. 1972: Simla renames it the LoC. 1984: Siachen becomes the world’s highest battlefield. 2019: India revokes Article 370, reorganising its side into two union territories. 2020: Pakistan answers with its new political map — the cartographic counter-claim. Today: the map in Pakistani classrooms shows one Kashmir.
The deeper history matters: before 1947, the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir was the largest in British India — and its accession was the one Partition question Radcliffe couldn’t answer, because princely states chose for themselves. The 1949 Karachi Agreement drew the ceasefire line with UN military observers (UNMOGIP — still deployed today, one of the UN’s oldest missions). The Simla Agreement of 2 July 1972, signed after the 1971 war, converted that line into the LoC and committed both sides to resolve differences bilaterally — the legal basis India cites and Pakistan’s plebiscite demand challenges.
The Position
The Dispute: Pakistan’s Case
The official stance.
Pakistan’s position, unchanged since 1948: Kashmir is disputed territory; the UNSC resolutions promised a plebiscite; India’s 2019 moves were “illegal and unilateral”; the solution is dialogue and the Kashmiri people’s will. Every Pakistani government — civilian or military — has held this line. The map is its visual form.
India’s counter-position — stated here for completeness — is that the entire former princely state, including the Pakistani-administered areas, is an integral part of India, and that the 2019 reorganisation was an internal matter. The UN and most international organisations use the neutral term “Pakistan-administered Kashmir” (and “Indian-administered Kashmir”) precisely to avoid taking sides. This guide presents Pakistan’s official position as Pakistan states it, alongside the internationally recognised facts both sides accept: the LoC’s location, its length, and its history.
The Legend
Reading the Map
What each line means.
Red dotted line: the LoC — extended on the official map to the Karakoram Pass. “Frontier Undecided”: the Kashmir–China frontier, deliberately unmarked. Solid international borders: with Iran, Afghanistan (Durand Line) and China (1963 agreement). The Working Boundary: shown distinctly from the LoC — Pakistan’s refusal to call it settled. Green wash: the whole of J&K, Siachen included — the map’s central claim.
1947
The Radcliffe Line
The original wound.
Cyril Radcliffe — who had never visited India — drew the Partition boundary in five weeks (announced 17 August 1947). His line split Punjab and Bengal, stranded communities, and left Kashmir’s fate to its Maharaja — whose accession to India (October 1947) Pakistan has never accepted. Every line on today’s map descends from Radcliffe’s pen: the IB, the Working Boundary’s logic, and the ceasefire line that became the LoC.
1984–
Siachen: The Glacier War
The world’s highest battlefield.
The Siachen Glacier (76km, ~5,400m) was left undefined beyond NJ9842 — so in April 1984, India seized the heights; Pakistan responded. Troops have faced off in -50°C ever since — more soldiers have died from the cold and altitude than from combat. Pakistan’s 2020 map draws the LoC to the Karakoram Pass, placing Siachen inside Pakistan. A 2003 ceasefire holds — uneasily.
The Source
Where to See the Official Map
The authoritative version.
The Survey of Pakistan publishes the official map — it’s the version in textbooks, government offices and the 2020 unveiling. Note: international atlases and Google Maps show the de facto lines (LoC as a dashed boundary) — not Pakistan’s claim. When searching “Pakistan map with Kashmir”, know which map you’re looking at: the official one shows a single Kashmir; the international ones show the division.
The Illustration
About This Guide’s Map Image
A note on sources.
The map illustrating this guide comes from Wikimedia Commons (freely licensed, CC BY-SA) — it shows Pakistan’s standard international boundaries: the four provinces and federal territories, with the Kashmir region marked as disputed (hatched) along the Line of Control, exactly as international atlases render it. This is deliberately not Pakistan’s 2020 official political map (described above), which shows the entire Jammu & Kashmir as Pakistani territory. We show the international-standard map because it is the version most of the world recognises — and understanding both maps is the point of this guide: the official map is Pakistan’s claim; the Commons map is the world’s working picture.
Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
What readers ask most — answered.
What does Pakistan’s official map show about Kashmir?
The entire Jammu & Kashmir — including Siachen — as Pakistani territory (map unveiled 4 Aug 2020).
How long is the Line of Control?
~740km (some sources: 776km) — established by the 1972 Simla Agreement.
What is IIOJK?
“Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir” — Pakistan’s official term for the Indian-held side.
What is the Working Boundary?
The Punjab–Jammu line south of the LoC — Pakistan calls it a working border; India calls it international.
How big is Pakistan?
881,913 km² — the world’s 33rd-largest country.
What are Pakistan’s four borders?
India (2,912km), Afghanistan (2,430km, Durand Line), Iran (909km), China (523km) — plus a 1,046km Arabian Sea coastline.
Why do maps of Pakistan look different?
Because Kashmir is disputed. Pakistan’s official map (2020) shows all of J&K as Pakistani; international maps show the LoC as a dashed de facto boundary. Same country, two cartographies — this guide explains both.
Is the map image on this page official?
No — it’s a freely-licensed Wikimedia Commons map showing standard international boundaries (Kashmir marked disputed). Pakistan’s official 2020 political map is described in the guide above.
Feature Pakistan’s Geography Guides map the country — verified.