India Rejects China-Pakistan Joint Statement Amid Water Treaty Dispute

The Government of India categorically rejected "unwarranted references" to Jammu and Kashmir in a joint statement issued by China and Pakistan following high-level meetings in Beijing. The Ministry of External Affairs asserted that Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable parts of India, stating no other country has the legal standing to comment on them. India also opposed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, citing violations of its sovereignty.

Diplomatic tensions escalated at the United Nations Security Council, where India warned Pakistan of consequences for its sponsorship of cross-border terrorism. This follows India's decision to put the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance—a punitive measure resulting from a terror attack in Pahalgam in April 2025 that killed 26 civilians. Pakistan formally rejected this suspension, with officials characterizing the potential stoppage of water flow as an "act of war" and the weaponization of water as "completely unacceptable."

While India and Pakistan clashed over territorial sovereignty and water rights, the UN Security Council separately condemned a May 24 suicide attack on a train in Quetta, Pakistan. The Balochistan Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the strike, which killed at least 14 people. Within India, political leaders from both the BJP and Congress parties voiced support for the government's hardline stance on Kashmir, with some calling for the recovery of Pakistan-occupied territory.