India on Friday, 5 June firmly reiterated that the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) remains in abeyance until Pakistan completely and credibly ends its support for cross-border terrorism. The statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) came in direct response to Islamabad's accusation that New Delhi was seeking to 'weaponise water' through two river infrastructure projects.

India's Core Position

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, addressing a weekly media briefing in New Delhi, stated: 'We have suspended the Indus Waters Treaty and kept it in abeyance until Pakistan completely stops cross-border terrorism.' Jaiswal was responding to a question on the Pakistan Foreign Ministry's statement, which had criticised India's advancement of the Chenab-Beas Link Tunnel Project and plans to flush silt from the Salal Dam reservoir.

India's position, reiterated on Friday, is that until the treaty is formally revived, it is 'no longer bound to perform any of its obligations' under the 1960 agreement.

Court of Arbitration Award Rejected

The MEA also reaffirmed India's categorical rejection of the latest award issued by what it described as the 'illegally constituted' Court of Arbitration (CoA). The CoA had on 15 May 2026 issued what it termed an award concerning 'maximum pondage supplemental to the award on issues of general interpretation' of the IWT.

Jaiswal stated that India 'categorically rejects the present so-called award, just as it has firmly rejected all prior pronouncements of the illegally constituted CoA.' He added that India has 'never recognised the establishment of this so-called CoA' and that any 'proceeding, award, or decision issued by it is null and void.'

Last year, the MEA had similarly rejected a 'supplemental award' issued by the CoA regarding the Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects in Jammu and Kashmir, calling the body's very constitution 'a serious breach of the Indus Waters Treaty.'

Background: Pahalgam Attack and IWT Suspension

India placed the IWT in abeyance following the Pahalgam terror attack of 2025, exercising what it described as its rights as a sovereign nation under international law. The MEA had stated that the suspension would remain until Pakistan 'credibly and irrevocably abjured its support for cross-border terrorism.'

The IWT, originally signed on 19 September 1960, governs the utilisation of waters from the Indus river system between the two nations. It has historically been considered one of the more durable bilateral agreements, surviving multiple wars — making India's suspension a significant diplomatic escalation.

On the Swiss Ambassador's J&K Visit

Separately, Jaiswal addressed Pakistan's objections to the Swiss Ambassador's visit to Jammu and Kashmir, stating: 'Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, and the Swiss Ambassador, or any other ambassador, is free to visit.' The response signals India's continued pushback against any attempt to internationalise the Kashmir issue through diplomatic channels.

India's Broader Stance on Pakistan

The MEA has previously described Pakistan's resort to the CoA as 'consistent with its decades-long pattern of deception and manipulation of international forums,' and characterised such proceedings as 'desperate attempts to escape accountability for its role as the global epicentre of terrorism.' India has made clear that no arbitral body — 'much less this illegally constituted' one — has jurisdiction to examine the legality of India's sovereign decisions while the treaty remains in abeyance.

With the IWT suspension now firmly embedded in India's post-Pahalgam diplomatic posture, any resumption of treaty obligations appears contingent on a verifiable and lasting shift in Pakistan's counter-terrorism commitments — a threshold Islamabad has so far not met.