His remarks, delivered on television, come as Pakistan reels from reduced water flow in the Chenab River and an official communication freeze between the two sides following the recent Pahalgam terror attack and India’s Operation Sindoor.
In a fresh flashpoint between two nuclear-armed neighbours, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has declared that Islamabad will “defeat India in the water war,” framing the fallout from India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty as a new front in the countries’ long-standing hostilities.
His remarks, delivered on television, come as Pakistan reels from reduced water flow in the Chenab River and an official communication freeze between the two sides following the recent Pahalgam terror attack and India’s Operation Sindoor.
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Asif did not mince words. “The flow of water in the Chenab River is significantly lower than it should be, suggesting deliberate actions by India to restrict Pakistan’s water rights. India was defeated in a conventional war, and now we will defeat it in the water war as well,” he said in a televised address.
He also denied any ongoing back-channel negotiations with India, adding another layer of uncertainty to an already tense situation. Islamabad, meanwhile, has sent multiple formal letters to New Delhi asking for a review of the decision. According to reports, Syed Ali Murtaza, Pakistan’s water resources secretary, wrote four times to India’s Jal Shakti Ministry — three of those after Operation Sindoor — urging reconsideration of the treaty suspension.
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India, however, made its position clear. On April 24, it formally informed Pakistan of its decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance. “The obligation to honour a treaty in good faith is fundamental to a treaty. However, what we have seen instead is sustained cross-border terrorism by Pakistan targeting the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” India’s water resources secretary, Debashree Mukherjee, wrote.
Despite repeated outreach from Pakistan, India has stood firm. On April 29, an official reiterated that there would be no discussions until Pakistan “credibly and irrevocably abjures cross-border terrorism.”
This diplomatic deadlock appears to be escalating. Khawaja Asif’s warning, framed as a declaration of intent rather than mere rhetoric, comes amid increasing pressure on Pakistan to curb terror funding on Indian soil.
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In a move signaling a hardening of Islamabad’s stance, Asif also declared the 1972 Simla Agreement “a dead document,” shifting Pakistan’s Kashmir position back to its original post-Partition line. “The Simla Agreement is now a dead document. We are back to the 1948 position, when the United Nations declared the LoC a ceasefire line following the ceasefire and resolutions,” Asif stated. “Going forward, these disputes will be dealt with multilaterally or internationally.”
Casting doubt on the future of other diplomatic frameworks, he added, “Whether the Indus Waters Treaty is suspended or not, Simla is already over.”
