Pakistan has warned India against stealing its share of water flowing from Jammu and Kashmir region, saying any such attempt would be treated as “act of war.”
“Any attempt to stop, impede or divert Pakistan’s share of the waters will be treated as an act of war. India must make no mistake about it,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said, addressing the UN General Assembly that is meeting in New York for its 81st session.
He called out Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for unilaterally suspending the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), terming it an illegal move.
He told the global gathering that the United Nations experts and the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration have adjudicated in favor of Pakistan’s position.
Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif on India:
A year ago, Pakistan faced external aggression from India under a false pretext.
Pakistan exercised its inherent right of self-defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.
Our brave and valiant armed forces, under the… pic.twitter.com/bQFa2eS3di
— Clash Report (@clashreport) September 25, 2026
Under the 1960 Treaty, water from three of the rivers flows from the disputed region into Pakistan which then forms the Indus river system, a “lifeblood” of the entire region.
“Water must never be weaponized. Rivers should nourish nations, not divide them,” he said.
Sharif was referring to a period of heightened tensions in South Asia, with India accusing Pakistan-based militants of a role in an attack on Kashmir’s Pahalgam region that killed 26 tourists.
Sharif said Indian allegations lacked any evidence, and that Pakistan had offered to be part of a neutral investigation into the incident.
‘Catastrophe in the Making’: Pakistan Warns World Over Indian River Diversions
He praised Pakistan armed forces’ professionalism and bravery in warding off India’s massive air assault.
India refused the offer and launched drone strikes against Pakistan on May 7 in a conflict that raised fears of a wider confrontation between the two nuclear powers.
Sharif also particularly acknowledged U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace role that he said averted a catastrophe.
Trump, who announced a ceasefire between the two countries on May 10, has often taken credit for bringing Pakistan and India back from the nuclear brink, and noted that several jets were downed in the conflict — an allusion which is interpreted as recognition of the warplane losses that India suffered including high-tech Rafale jets.
Trump says India, Pakistan have agreed to ‘immediate’ ceasefire
The Pakistani prime minister noted that Trump’s “resolute and visionary leadership” saved “hundreds of millions of lives”.
“Who knows the extent of devastation that could have taken place had President Trump not stepped in at this critical moment with clarity of thought and action?” he said..
“We must therefore ensure that South Asia never reaches this precipice ever again,” he reminded the gathering of 193 UNGA members.
Sharif was also emphatic in underscoring the need to resolve the longstanding Kashmir dispute — considered to be at the center of Pakistan-India rivalry that has spanned nearly eight decades.
Arbitration Court Halts India’s Disputed Hydro Work, Upholds Indus Treaty
“For eight decades, the Kashmiri people have waited for the United Nations to fulfill its solemn commitment of a free and impartial plebiscite,” he said.
Kashimiris, he said, have been forced to go through suffering in the form of “illegal occupation, arbitrary detention, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, sexual violence and collective punishment” for generations.
Islamabad, he said, would remain steadfast in its diplomatic, political and moral support for the Kashmiris, who have been denied their UN-promised right to self-determination.
Iftikhar Ali is a veteran Pakistani journalist, former president of UN Correspondents Association, and a recipient of the Pride of Performance civil award
