NEW YORK: Pakistan condemned the use of water as an ‘instrument of coercion and war’, asserting that its access was a fundamental right that must be protected.
Speaking at the Open Debate of the Security Council on “Water, Peace and Security”, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN Maleeha Lodhi stressed, “Pakistan denounces any such practice, real or threatened, as we believe it to be inconsistent with the precepts of international humanitarian law.”
She described the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, between Pakistan and India as “a model of what can be achieved through bilateral agreements”.
Earlier, the UN secretary general in his address to the council also cited this treaty as an example of positive cooperation. However, Maleeha also pointed out that this treaty is equally a good case study of what could go wrong if such agreements are not honoured or threatened by a party. She urged the international community to remain vigilant towards any sign of unwillingness to maintain cooperation and act to avert any possible conflict or coercive measures that could undermine these agreements.
She also called on the UN to develop, nurture and protect normative frameworks on waterways at multilateral and bilateral levels.
The envoy said that if the United Nations wishes to maintain international peace and security, it must strive to find ways to ensure that member states remain willing to share water resources peacefully and cooperatively and that their willingness to resolve such issues are not constrained.
The envoy said the cooperative ability of states would depend on technical, political and financial factors, adding that several international institutions could address these developmental requirements.
She reminded the 15-member council that it is the only international body that can enhance member states political ability to cooperate.
She said that it is the Security Council’s responsibility to resolve international conflicts and disputes, especially prolonged ones, in particular in Asia and Africa.
“Unburdened by conflicts of the past, new challenges can then be addressed cooperatively and comprehensively,” she added.
She asked the UN to convey its commitment to maintaining cooperation in the face of water scarcity with the message, “We will respect and protect our existing understandings and build where they are yet to be reached,” she said. She added that this should come with the proviso that this challenge does not put international peace and security at risk.
