‘Kashmir Is Pakistan’s Jugular Vein’: Shehbaz Sharif Warns Indus Water Diversion ‘Act Of War’

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday warned India at the UN General Assembly that any attempt to stop, impede or divert Pakistan’s share of the Indus waters would be treated as an “act of war”, while reiterating Islamabad’s positions on Kashmir and the May 2025 military confrontation between the two countries.

Sharif’s remarks came months after India placed the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance following the Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people. He said the decision had “no legal basis whatsoever” and again credited US President Donald Trump’s “timely intervention” with helping bring the four-day May 2025 confrontation to an end and preventing it from escalating into an all-out war. India has rejected that account, while an Indian diplomat in the audience was seen smiling and shaking his head as Sharif described Pakistan’s version of events.

Sharif issues warning over Indus waters

Calling the Indus River system the “lifeblood not only for the people of Pakistan, but for the entire region”, Sharif said water must not be used as a weapon.

He argued that India’s decision to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance had no legal basis and claimed that India’s position had already been rejected by UN experts and the Court of Arbitration.

“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,” he said.

India has held the treaty in abeyance since April 23, 2025, following the Pahalgam attack. New Delhi has maintained that the treaty will remain in abeyance until Pakistan verifiably ends its support for cross-border terrorism.

Pakistan’s account of the May 2025 conflict

Sharif also revisited the four-day military confrontation between India and Pakistan in May 2025, which followed Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the Pahalgam attack.

He said Pakistan had exercised its right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter when it faced “external aggression from India”.

Sharif again credited Trump’s “timely intervention” with averting an all-out war between the “two nuclear armed neighbours” and presented the intervention as having helped end the confrontation.

New Delhi has consistently rejected that account. India has said no third party brokered the ceasefire and that the fighting ended following direct talks between Indian and Pakistani military officials.

Sharif reiterates Kashmir position

The Pakistani prime minister also linked the question of regional peace to the Kashmir dispute, saying South Asia must not again reach “that precipice”.

“Kashmir has and always will be Pakistan’s jugular vein,” he said.

Sharif said Kashmiris had waited eight decades for a UN plebiscite and argued that a just solution to the Kashmir dispute was necessary to ensure that South Asia did not again approach the brink of a wider conflict.

While Sharif was outlining Pakistan’s account of the May 2025 confrontation, Indian diplomat R Srinivas was seen smiling and shaking his head.

The reaction was captured on camera and appeared to signal disagreement with Sharif’s remarks. There was no formal rebuttal on the floor during the speech.

Gaza and Afghanistan also feature in address

Sharif turned to Gaza during his address, recalling eight-year-old Wafa Akilah, who was killed on what should have been her first day of school.

“Does not a child born in Gaza deserve the same life and the same future and same dream as a child, anywhere else in the world?” he asked.

On the West Bank, Sharif said “the forcible eviction of Palestinians clearly reflects Israel’s genocidal agenda, which continues unabated.”

He also accused terrorist groups of operating from sanctuaries in Afghanistan and destabilising Pakistan. Sharif called on Afghan authorities to take “verifiable, decisive action”.

Referring to the 81st Session’s theme of restoring trust, Sharif said trust would return when “guns are silenced and replaced by handshakes, embraces and smiles.”

“We have chosen dialogue over confrontation. We have chosen cooperation over coercion. We have chosen peace over war,” he said.

(With inputs from Indian Express)