By The South Asia Times

BRUSSELS - Pakistan on Wednesday warned against the “weaponisation” of shared water resources, urging stronger international safeguards for transboundary river systems as global tensions rise over water governance.

Speaking at a conference in Brussels on “Transboundary Water Resources: A Weaponised Global Common,” Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar said water must never be used as an instrument of coercion and called for renewed commitment to international treaties governing shared rivers.

The event was co-organised by the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and the Embassy of Pakistan in Brussels.

Dar said the governance of transboundary waters was a “global responsibility,” stressing that shared resources should be managed cooperatively through legal frameworks rather than becoming sources of conflict. He warned that failure to uphold agreements risks turning water into a geopolitical weapon.

Citing former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Dar said water crises are often driven by governance failures rather than absolute scarcity, and that shared rivers can serve as pathways to peace and regional integration.

Referring to the Indus Waters Treaty signed with India in 1960, he said Pakistan remained committed to peaceful dispute resolution under international law and noted that the agreement had survived decades of conflict.

However, Dar raised concerns over what he described as unilateral Indian actions involving new reservoirs, expansion of existing dams, and diversion projects across the Indus basin, which he said could significantly alter river flows and risk “hydro-hegemony.”

He warned that such developments threaten the livelihoods of over 240 million people in Pakistan and endanger one of the world’s oldest civilisations rooted in the Indus Valley.

“Water must never be viewed as an instrument of coercion,” Dar said, adding that Pakistan supports dialogue and diplomacy to resolve disputes.

He stressed that respect for treaties is a global imperative, citing Europe as an example of successful cooperative water management across borders.

Pakistan, he added, is among the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries despite contributing less than one percent of global emissions, underscoring the need for stronger international cooperation on water security.

Dar concluded that shared rivers should unite nations rather than divide them, calling for renewed commitment to cooperation, legal frameworks, and peaceful coexistence.