Pakistan suspends trade with India, says diverting Indus water ‘an act of war’, closes air space

Pakistan also said it would shut down the Wagah border post, and reduce the strength of the High Commission to 30.

Written by Shubhajit Roy

New Delhi | Updated: April 25, 2025 07:23 AM IST

2 min read

PM Narendra Modi (right), Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif(left). (File Photo)

A day after India took several diplomatic measures against Pakistan over the Pahalgam terror attack, Islamabad said Thursday it “shall exercise the right to hold all bilateral agreements with India, including but not limited to the Simla Agreement, in abeyance.”

On Wednesday, India put on hold the Indus Waters Treaty, downgraded diplomatic relations with Pakistan, expelled diplomats and top defence officials from the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi, cancelled all visas granted to Pakistan nationals and directed them to leave the country in 48 hours, and shut the Attari-Wagah border.

The reaction from Pakistan came after the country’s Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif chaired a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC).

Also Read | Pahalgam terror attack: Who are the 3 men in the sketches released by J&K police?

A statement from its Prime Minister’s Office said Pakistan “vehemently rejects the Indian announcement to hold the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance” and any attempt to stop or divert the flow of water belonging to Pakistan as per the Indus Waters Treaty, and the usurpation of the rights of lower riparian will be considered as “an Act of War”.

Also read | Pakistan suspends trade with India, says diverting Indus water ‘an act of war’, closes air space

“Pakistan’s airspace will be closed with immediate effect for all Indian owned or Indian operated airlines… all trade with India, including to and from any third country through Pakistan, is suspended forthwith.”

It also said that it will be shutting down the Wagah border post, and reducing the strength of the High Commission to 30 and expelling the Defence services officials from the Indian High Commission, in a tit-for-tat move.

Shubhajit Roy

Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism ‘2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury’s special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban’s capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram

Tags:

Pakistan