Archive · 1 Sep 2026
Sharif Urges Water Treaty Respect at SCO Summit
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke at a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Bishkek.
He said water is very important for people, farms and future generations.
He warned that countries should not use water to pressure or punish one another.
He said agreements between India and Pakistan about shared rivers must be respected.
India and Pakistan disagree about the current status of the Indus Waters Treaty.
Sharif also said Pakistan had lost more than 90,000 lives fighting terrorism.
He said terrorism had caused more than $150 billion in economic losses for Pakistan.
He asked SCO countries to work together against terrorism and extremism.
He also described Pakistan’s plans for leading the SCO, including cooperation on technology, energy, health and poverty.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said water is the region’s “lifeblood” and must not be weaponised or used for political pressure.
Sharif urged India and Pakistan to honour shared-water agreements, including the Indus Waters Treaty, in both letter and spirit.
He said Pakistan had lost more than 90,000 lives and suffered over $150 billion in economic losses while fighting terrorism.
Sharif called for stronger Shanghai Cooperation Organisation cooperation against terrorism and said lasting peace requires addressing militants using Afghan territory.
He outlined Pakistan’s 2026–27 SCO chairmanship priorities, including AI governance, energy, health, poverty reduction, disaster management, culture and sports.
- Who
- Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, speaking on Pakistan’s positions and reported losses.
- What
- Sharif addressed water security, the Indus Waters Treaty, terrorism, regional cooperation and Pakistan’s upcoming SCO chairmanship.
- When
- At the SCO summit on a Tuesday; the articles do not provide a calendar date. He also referred to events in April and June of the preceding period.
- Where
- Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.
- Why
- He urged countries to keep shared-water agreements out of political disputes, strengthen counterterrorism cooperation and promote regional peace and development.
Pakistan’s Position
India’s Position
Status of the Indus Waters Treaty
Pakistan’s Position
Pakistan says the treaties governing shared waters are solemn, binding international commitments that must be honoured unconditionally and cannot be set aside for political convenience.
India’s Position
India says it placed the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance after the Pahalgam terror attack and rejects the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s authority to comment on that sovereign decision.
Arbitration process
Pakistan’s Position
Pakistan approached the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague to determine the treaty’s status and challenged India’s action.
India’s Position
India says the arbitration body is illegally constituted, has no jurisdiction and that its establishment violates the Indus Waters Treaty.
Security and Afghanistan
Pakistan’s Position
Sharif said lasting peace will remain out of reach while terrorists use Afghan territory to kill Pakistanis and others, and called for stronger regional counterterrorism cooperation.
India’s Position
The articles do not provide a response from Afghanistan or another opposing side to this allegation.
- Speaker
- Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan’s prime minister.
- Forum
- Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit.
- Location
- Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
- Water position
- Sharif said water must not be weaponised, used as coercion or exploited for political leverage.
- Treaty dispute
- Sharif called the Indus Waters Treaty and other shared-water agreements binding commitments; the article says India placed the treaty in abeyance and rejected a Permanent Court of Arbitration order concerning it.
- Reported terrorism losses
- Sharif said Pakistan sacrificed more than 90,000 lives and suffered more than $150 billion in economic losses over more than two decades of counterterrorism efforts.
- SCO chairmanship
- Pakistan is set to chair the SCO Council of Heads of State for 2026–27, with the next summit scheduled to be hosted by Islamabad.
- Proposed priorities
- Pakistan proposed cooperation on sovereign AI infrastructure and governance, IT, energy, poverty reduction, disaster management, health, culture and sports.
