Pakistan asks UN to press India to honour Indus Waters Treaty

Pakistan has asked the United Nations Security Council to call on India to stop any action that could “stop, divert, restrict, manipulate or otherwise interfere with the flow of waters lawfully belonging to Pakistan” under the Indus Waters Treaty, warning that the lives of 250 million people in the Indus Basin are at stake.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar made the appeal in a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres dated September 30, The Express Tribune reported. It is his second letter on the issue, after an earlier one on June 17.

A court ruling on Pakistan’s side

Dar’s letter points to a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration on August 31, which confirmed that the Indus Waters Treaty remains binding on both countries. India has held the treaty “in abeyance” and refuses to accept its binding authority.

The court also barred India from completing the dam wall and power intake structures of a project beyond specified levels for 90 days after a final decision by the neutral expert, which is expected in July 2027.

What Pakistan is complaining about

The letter sets out Pakistan’s concerns about India’s conduct:

• Ratle: construction work at the Ratle Hydro-Electric Plant
• Canals: alleged illegal diversion canals
• The treaty: India’s refusal to accept the treaty’s binding authority
• Food and water: the threat to the water and food security of 250 million people
• Kashmir: which Pakistan describes as the “core dispute” between the two countries

“An act of war”

The letter recalls the position taken by Pakistan’s National Security Committee: “any attempt to stop or divert the flow of water lawfully belonging to Pakistan under the Treaty would be regarded as an act of war”.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif delivered the same warning at the UN General Assembly this month, telling world leaders that India’s decision to hold the treaty in abeyance had no legal basis and had been rejected by UN experts and the Permanent Court of Arbitration. At the UN, Pakistan’s delegation accused India of having “stooped to a new low of weaponising water”.

A treaty that survived wars

The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960 with the World Bank’s help. It divides the six rivers of the Indus system between the two countries, giving Pakistan the western rivers, the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab, on which most of its farming depends. The treaty survived the wars of 1965 and 1971, which is why India’s move to set it aside has alarmed Pakistan so deeply.

Relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours have been badly strained since the military conflict of May 2025, which Pakistan calls Marka-i-Haq.

Why it matters

The Indus and its tributaries feed Pakistan’s farms, cities and power plants. By taking the dispute to the Security Council with a court ruling in hand, Islamabad is making the case that India is not just breaking a bilateral agreement but threatening regional peace. Read our reports on Pakistan’s reply to India at the UN and on the prime minister’s UN address.

This article draws on reporting by The Express Tribune and Dawn.