LAHORE: Senate Chairman Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani has voiced concern over India’s unilateral actions on the Indus Waters Treaty, warning that any attempt to use water as political pressure could endanger regional stability and the livelihoods of millions in Pakistan.
Gilani raised the issue during a meeting with US Consul General Stetson Sanders in Lahore, where both sides discussed Pakistan-US ties, trade, investment and regional security. He urged the international community to support the restoration of treaty obligations and respect for international law.
The concern comes amid continuing tension over India’s decision to place the 1960 water-sharing treaty “in abeyance” after the April 2025 Pahalgam attack, a move Pakistan has repeatedly rejected as illegal. Islamabad says the treaty has no clause allowing unilateral suspension, while India maintains the arrangement will remain frozen until Pakistan addresses its concerns over cross-border terrorism.
Gilani said water should not be turned into a coercive tool, especially in a region already facing climate stress, food-security risks and fragile relations between two nuclear-armed neighbours.
The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered by the World Bank in 1960, governs the use of the Indus river system and has long been seen as one of the few agreements to survive repeated India-Pakistan crises. Its breakdown, even temporarily, has raised fears in Pakistan’s farming belt, where agriculture depends heavily on river flows originating upstream.
Gilani also reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire for stronger engagement with the United States, describing bilateral ties as an important part of Islamabad’s foreign policy. Both sides agreed on the need to deepen parliamentary contacts and expand cooperation through delegation-level exchanges.
