Pakistan Minister Warns India Over Indus Waters Treaty, Calls It ‘Act of War’

On Thursday, Ishaq Dar, Pakistan's foreign minister, urged for a "composite dialogue" with India to resolve all "contentious issues" between the two nations but warned with respect to the Indus Waters Treaty, which India placed in abeyance after the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack, which determined the terrorists had links to Pakistan, and was responsible for the killing of 26 civilians.

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In his address to the Pakistan Senate, Ishaq Dar stated, the ceasefire with India, which has been extended, will last until May 18, but ultimately a political process will have to take place to resolve all issues.

New Delhi did not mention a specific date for the ceasefire agreement and the Indian Army said on Thursday that both states agreed to follow implement CBMs to ease tensions.

With respect to the Indus Waters Treaty that India placed in abeyance, Ishaq Dar, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, commented, "We have told the world we will hold a Composite dialogue," while he reiterated, any attempts to block Pakistan's water, will be considered "an act of war."

On Thursday, the prime minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, explained his willingness for a peace process with India, following four days of military clashes between the two countries over the terror attack in Pahalgam and India launching of “Operation Sindoor.”

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Any talks with Pakistan will be only on its support to cross-border terrorism, India said on Thursday, with external affairs minister S Jaishankar declaring himself willing to go into a dialogue on the subject.

“Pakistan has a list of terrorists, who need to be handed over. They have to shut down terrorist infrastructure, they know what to do,” Jaishankar said, while ruling out any scope for a third-party mediation.

“That is a national consensus for many years, and there is absolutely no change in that consensus that dealings with Pakistan will be bilateral,” Jaishankar added.

The ceasefire understanding has generally held by between the two countries except for sudden and short drone sightings at different stretches of the border. New Delhi is strictly against talks with Pakistan that will consider contentious issues like Kashmir or the now-suspended Indus Waters Treaty and has, instead, stated that such talks will be held only at the level of DGMOs.

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