Pakistan urges India to engage with it constructively within Indus Water Treaty framework

Pakistan on Wednesday urged India to engage “constructively” within the framework of the Indus Waters Treaty, days after New Delhi rejected an award by the Hague-based Court of Arbitration and reiterated that its decision to keep the treaty in abeyance remains in force.

Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said, as cited by PTI, that Islamabad remained committed to implementing the treaty in “letter and spirit” and would continue to urge India to adopt the same approach.

Andrabi said the Court of Arbitration had reaffirmed that the Indus Waters Treaty remained fully enforced and binding. Pakistan would take all possible measures to ensure that the decision of the court was implemented fully, he added.


Also Read: India rejects Indus Waters award, says treaty remains in abeyance; ‘illegal’ court has no say in its actions

“Pakistan will continue to urge India to reciprocate with the same approach whereby the treaty is upheld in letter and spirit and in its full legal documented provisions,” Andrabi said in the report.

The comments come days after India rejected the arbitration award, maintaining that the Court of Arbitration was “illegally constituted” and had no jurisdiction over India's sovereign decisions.

India rejects arbitration award

The Ministry of External Affairs has said India does not recognise the existence in law of the Court of Arbitration and has not participated in its proceedings.

“This so-called Court of Arbitration has no jurisdiction whatsoever to pronounce on India’s sovereign decisions,” the ministry said.

India has also maintained that the court's latest award, as well as any future pronouncements by the body, would have no effect on the country's actions concerning projects being undertaken by India.

“India’s decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance remains in force,” the Ministry of External Affairs said.

The dispute over the treaty intensified after India decided to place it in abeyance following the Pahalgam terror attack in April last year that killed 26 civilians.

Pakistan approaches arbitration court

Pakistan had approached the Court of Arbitration in The Hague in March this year seeking a determination on the status of the treaty, effectively challenging India's decision to place it in abeyance.

Also Read: India tells arbitration court Indus order holds no water

Pakistan has welcomed the court's order and said it would take steps to ensure its implementation. India, however, has rejected the court's jurisdiction and maintained that its pronouncements cannot affect India's sovereign actions.

The latest statements from Islamabad and New Delhi underline the sharply divergent positions of the two countries on both the status of the Indus Waters Treaty and the authority of the arbitration body.

While Pakistan is calling for renewed engagement within the treaty framework, India continues to maintain that its decision to keep the treaty in abeyance remains in force.