Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has issued a stern warning to India, saying Pakistan is ready to fight “on every front”. The war threat comes as New Delhi again reiterated its stand that the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) remains suspended due to Islamabad’s continued support to cross-border terrorism.
India had stopped this historic water sharing agreement after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22 last year. Last week, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed that New Delhi’s stand on the matter has not changed.
Increasing rhetoric regarding water rights
Addressing a public meeting in Pakistan, Bhutto accused India of trying to make the Indus River a political weapon. He said that Pakistan will stand firmly on its water rights.
Bhutto said, “Pakistan is ready for war and will never compromise on the rights of the Indus River. This is an attempt to weaponize the river water against us.” This rising tension comes after the statement of External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal in which he reaffirmed that the Indus Water Treaty is on hold because Pakistan continues to support cross-border terrorist networks.
“Pakistan must credibly and irreversibly give up its support for cross-border terrorism,” Jaiswal said. This treaty, brokered by the World Bank in 1960, has been managing the distribution of the Indus River system between the two neighboring countries for more than six decades.
‘Indus River is not a weapon that can be…’
Bhutto’s aggressive rhetoric is in line with the Pakistani government’s official stance, although it significantly escalates military tensions. During a seminar held in Islamabad, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar rejected India’s suspension of the agreement, arguing that the 1960 agreement “remains valid, binding and effective”.
This is not the first time that Bhutto has raised his voice against India’s actions after the Pahalgam incident. He had earlier stressed that the Indus River was Pakistan’s vital “lifeline”, and warned that its citizens wanted “peace with dignity” rather than “surrender”.
Bhutto said, “Pakistan should speak clearly. The Indus River is not a means of exerting pressure. The Indus River is not a thing for negotiation. The Indus River is not a weapon that can be handed over to India. The Indus River is the lifeline of Pakistan. And if there is any attempt to strangulate this lifeline, then it should be considered as a threat to the existence of our country. Pakistan should convey this message to India.”
He further alleged that India was not fulfilling its promises and said that “Using water resources as a weapon is dangerous. We want peace, but with respect. We want dialogue, but within the ambit of law. We want to live together, but not by kneeling. So a message should go from this seminar, from this city, from this moment. Pakistan will protect its water, its people, its treaty, its sovereignty and its future.”
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