Jawaharial Nehru began the long process of modernization and sought to deemphasize the caste system. Two years later, in 1949, a war broke out between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, and this dispute continues today even though China seized part of Kashmir in 1962. Both India and Pakistan joined the British Commomwealth as Dominion members and adopted English as their offical languages. India sought assistance from the Soviet Union, while Pakistan became more closely aligned with the United States.