Pakistan warns Indus Waters Treaty breach could hit regional peace

Pakistan has warned that any move to deny it Indus basin waters could threaten regional peace and security. The statement sharpens a treaty dispute with India that now also tests international law and water security.Image used for representational purposes onlyPakistan has said that any attempt to deprive it of waters allocated under the Indus Waters Treaty would have “profound consequences” for regional peace and security, according to a media report. Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar made the remarks while virtually addressing a seminar on ‘The Indus Waters Treaty: South Asian Security at the Crossroads’.Dar also said the issue went beyond bilateral relations and concerned “the sanctity of treaties” and “confidence in international law”, Dawn reported on Friday. He said Pakistan had consistently sought to resolve differences through dialogue, diplomacy and the mechanisms provided under the treaty.The Indus Waters Treaty, signed in 1960 and brokered by the World Bank, governs the sharing of the waters of the six rivers of the Indus basin. Under the agreement, the three eastern rivers were allocated to India and the three western rivers to Pakistan. India has kept the treaty in “abeyance” since April 2025 in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.“The treaty contains no provision permitting either party to unilaterally suspend or place it in abeyance,” Dar said. He added that neither country could “through a unilateral political declaration, extinguish obligations solemnly undertaken under international law.” Dar, who is also Pakistan’s foreign minister, said the issue was especially important for Pakistan because its agriculture, food security, energy production, livelihoods and economic development depended heavily on the Indus river system. “The Indus Basin is the lifeline of more than 250 million Pakistanis,” he told the seminar organised by the Embassy of Pakistan in Washington.He also linked the issue to climate change, saying Pakistan was already among the world’s most water-stressed countries and faced changing precipitation patterns, glacial retreat, floods, droughts and increasing hydrological variability. “Any attempt to deprive Pakistan of the waters rightfully allocated to it under the Indus Waters Treaty would have profound consequences for regional peace and security,” he said. A day after the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, India announced a series of punitive measures against Pakistan, including placing the treaty in “abeyance”. India has said the Indus Waters Treaty remains in abeyance in response to Pakistan’s continued support for cross-border terrorism.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 29, 2026 21:20 IST