The escalating conflict between India and Pakistan, two neighbors who have been rivals for decades, erupted in the early hours of Wednesday morning when New Delhi launched missiles across the border.

India and Pakistan are fueling each other’s extremism without an off-ramp in sight. The conflict between India and Pakistan has just escalated faster than at any previous point since they both acquired nuclear weapons at the end of the 20th century. That may be because the two countries’ regimes have never been more alike.