'We will go to war': Pakistan threatens India as the country faces a water crisis

Pakistan's defence minister, Khawaja Asif, has threatened war against India over water security after New Delhi said that its decision to keep the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance was "unchanged".

The statement from Asif comes as the Pakistan government faces widespread domestic instability and an internal water crisis that experts attribute to gross mismanagement.

Speaking to ARY News on Saturday, Asif declared, "The moment we feel that our national security, and water is part of our national security, is being threatened, we will go to war against India. Definitely."

He further claimed that military action would be considered if Islamabad found evidence that India was acting at an "alarming speed" to disrupt water supplies.

India has been firm on the suspension of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, a consequence of the Pakistan-sponsored terror attack in Pahalgam in April 2025, which claimed 26 lives. New Delhi has said that the treaty will remain suspended until Pakistan takes credible, concrete action to dismantle its cross-border terror infrastructure.

While the World Bank-brokered treaty historically permits Pakistan to utilise 80 per cent of the Indus water basin for its agricultural needs, the nation's current failure to manage these resources has left its farmlands vulnerable.

Khawaja Asif accuses India of 'weaponising water', fails to back up claim

Khawaja Asif attempted to deflect blame for Pakistan's water shortage towards New Delhi, accusing it of "weaponising water", manipulating the Chenab River flows, and withholding data.

However, he went on to admit that he had no current information on developments over the past year, despite his claims that Pakistani teams had previously conducted "around 115 inspections".

Meanwhile, Pakistan's own internal failure to manage water resources is evident, with a severe water crisis now impacting nearly one-third of its population, particularly in Sindh and Balochistan provinces.

Official data from Sindh's irrigation department highlights a failing infrastructure: the North West Canal faces a 64.1 per cent deficit, while the Rice and Dadu Canals report shortages of 38 per cent and 82 per cent, respectively.

As water levels at the critical Sukkur Barrage continue to collapse, local leaders are warning of an "economic massacre" caused by the state's inability to resolve internal water distribution disputes.