Pakistan has called on India to immediately resume the normal functioning of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and to fully and faithfully honour its treaty obligations following a supplemental award issued by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) on June 27, 2025.
“In a supplemental award announced on June 27 2025, the Court hearing the Pakistan-India dispute over Kishenganga and Ratle hydroelectric projects has found that its competence remains intact, and that it has a continuing responsibility to advance these proceedings in a timely, efficient, and fair manner,” the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement on Monday.
“The Court of Arbitration decided to announce this supplemental award in the wake of India’s illegal and unilateral announcement to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance,” it added.
The FO added that the award “vindicates Pakistan’s position that the Indus Waters Treaty remains valid and operational, and that India has no right to take unilateral action about it”.
The PCA ruling reaffirmed its jurisdiction over the dispute concerning hydroelectric projects (Kishenganga and Ratle) despite India’s unilateral decision in April 2025 to hold the treaty in abeyance.
The court found that India’s suspension of the treaty does not affect the PCA’s competence to adjudicate the matter, thereby vindicating Pakistan’s position that the IWT remains valid and operational and that India has no right to take unilateral action on the treaty.
The treaty, mediated by the World Bank in 1960, governs the sharing of waters of the Indus River system and is critical for Pakistan, as it ensures water for 80 percent of its farms. Pakistan has opposed some Indian hydroelectric projects, arguing they violate the treaty. India’s suspension of the treaty followed a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan, a claim Islamabad denies.
The PCA’s unanimous and binding supplemental award emphasized that the treaty holds until both countries mutually agree to withdraw from it, which is not the case. Pakistan continues to honour the treaty, while India’s unilateral suspension has been declared illegal by the court.
India, however, has rejected the PCA ruling, questioning the tribunal’s legitimacy and denying any binding obligation under the IWT, signaling a confrontational stance.