No change in Indus Waters Treaty stance: India tells Pakistan

New Delhi, Aug 14: Days after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif warned that any attempt to stop his country’s water supply would invite a “decisive response,” India on Friday said there is no change in its position on the Indus Waters Treaty.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal while addressing the weekly media briefing here, said, “There is no change in the way we think. Our position on the treaty is clear.”
Pertinently, India placed the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance following the April 2025 terror attack in Pahalgam.
The Indian government has maintained that the treaty cannot return to operation in its existing form unless Pakistan takes credible and permanent steps to end cross-border terrorism.
Jaiswal also responded to questions concerning Jammu and Kashmir and remarks made by Norway’s foreign minister following discussions with Pakistani officials during a visit to Islamabad.
Reiterating India’s position on the issue, the MEA spokesperson said Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh are an “integral and inalienable” part of India.
He said the international community should instead be concerned about atrocities in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and the use of the territory for cross-border terrorism. “The whole of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable part of India,” Jaiswal said.
India has consistently maintained that issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir are internal to the country, while Pakistan continues to raise the matter internationally.
The latest exchange comes amid continued tensions between the two countries over water-sharing arrangements and cross-border terrorism. Pakistan has continued to assert its rights under the Indus Waters Treaty, while New Delhi has linked the future of the agreement to Pakistan’s actions against cross-border terrorism. (KNO)