Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar has reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to treaty-based transboundary water governance, stressing that water must never be used as an instrument of coercion and calling for enhanced international cooperation to address growing water security challenges.
DPM/FM Dar urges rule-based water governance, warns against using water as tool of coercion
ISLAMABAD, Jun 19 (APP): Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar has reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to treaty-based transboundary water governance, stressing that water must never be used as an instrument of coercion and calling for enhanced international cooperation to address growing water security challenges.
In a video-recorded keynote address delivered at a seminar titled “Transboundary Water Resources: A Weaponised Global Common” in Brussels on Thursday, Ishaq Dar underscored the importance of respecting international law, upholding multilateral cooperation, and ensuring the peaceful management of shared water resources.
The seminar was organized by the Embassy of Pakistan in Brussels in collaboration with the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), according to a press release received here on Friday.
Addressing the gathering, Ambassador of Pakistan to Belgium, Luxembourg, and the European Union Rahim Hayat Qureshi said that transboundary water resources are critical to regional stability, global security, and sustainable development. He reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes through dialogue and established legal mechanisms.
The event brought together prominent policymakers, researchers, legal experts, academics, and practitioners, including Federal Minister Senator Dr. Musadik Masood Malik, Policy Officer at Water Europe Madalena Cepeda, Senior Researcher at Utrecht University Cathy Suykens, international arbitration expert Feisal Hussain Naqvi, Head of Climate Programme at CEPS Isabel Scheckenbach, and Founder of Captiv8 Strategies and Editor of The Pakistan Playbook Danish Qayyum.
Nearly one hundred European policymakers, researchers, legal experts, academics, and practitioners participated in the seminar, exchanging views on climate vulnerability, water security, transboundary cooperation, rule-based governance, and the peaceful management of shared water resources.
