Every water drop is red line: Pak PM's fresh warning to India over Indus treaty

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif used the country’s Independence Day celebrations to issue a fresh warning to India over the Indus Waters Treaty suspension, declaring that "every single drop" of Pakistan’s water was a red line and threatening a "direct response" if New Delhi did not "come to the right path".Addressing the Yadgar-e-Fatah ceremony marking Pakistan’s Independence Day, Sharif also warned that any future challenge to Pakistan’s sovereignty or security would invite a response stronger than the one Islamabad claims to have delivered during the 2025 conflict.The Prime Minister accused India of unilaterally and illegally suspending the Indus Waters Treaty following what he described as India’s defeat in the three-day war and described the move as evidence that India was an "enemy of peace".India suspended the water-sharing treaty with Pakistan after Pak-linked terrorists carried out a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam in April 2025, killing 26. The suspension was among several punitive measures by New Delhi before it launched Operation Sindoor, a military offensive on terror infrastructure inside Pakistan. “Every single drop of our water is a red line. If India does not come to the right path, it will be given a direct response," Sharif said, while warning that Pakistan would respond with greater force if its sovereignty or security were challenged in the future."The message of the 2025 war has reached the entire world," he said, claiming that the conflict had brought an "extraordinary increase" in Pakistan’s prestige. "If anyone in the future, even by mistake, challenges Pakistan’s sovereignty and security, they will be given an even stronger response than in 2025." The Pakistani Prime Minister further said his country wanted peace, honour and dignity and sought to portray Pakistan as a force for regional stability."We stand for peace with honour and dignity and have become a guarantee of stability in this region," Sharif said.The Prime Minister also said Pakistan wanted the region and the wider world to remain free of conflicts and called for disputes to be resolved through justice and in accordance with the principles of the United Nations.The Prime Minister continued his rhetoric, saying Pakistan had demonstrated its ability to defend its sovereignty and security in the 2025 conflict and added the country’s "true character and identity" was reflected not only in its conduct on the battlefield but also in its efforts to promote peace.Sharif credited Field Marshal Asim Munir with demonstrating bravery during the war and playing what he described as a historic role in promoting peace in the Middle East.On Kashmir, he said, Pakistan’s position remained unequivocal and that Islamabad would continue to support the right of self-determination of Kashmiris."We will not allow their sacrifices to go in vain and will continue to provide political, diplomatic and moral support for their freedom from Indian oppression until our Kashmiri brothers and sisters receive their fundamental right," he said.The Prime Minister Sharif, in his Independence Day speech, also mentioned the recently-signed joint defence agreement involving Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Under the agreement, an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be regarded as an attack against all three.- EndsPublished On: Aug 14, 2026 11:24 IST