India warned the Pakistani leadership that any "misadventure" will have "painful consequences"
- Pakistan's army chief threatened nuclear retaliation against India if faced with an existential threat
- Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto urged unity against India and warned of possible war
- India rejected the Permanent Court of Arbitration's ruling on Indus Water Treaty as legally void
India on Thursday warned the Pakistani leadership that any "misadventure" will have "painful consequences". Speaking at the weekly media briefing, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal referenced reports regarding "war-mongering" by Pakistan against India. He added, "Pakistan would be well-advised to temper its rhetoric as any misadventure will have painful consequences, as was demonstrated recently."
He also criticised Pakistan of whipping up "anti-India" rhetoric to "hide their own failures".
This comes after Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir issued a nuclear threat to India. During his visit to the US, Munir threatened that it would "take half the world down" if faced with an "existential threat" from India. The remarks were the first nuclear threats known to have ever been delivered from US soil against a third country.
"We are a nuclear nation. If we think we are going down, we'll take half the world down with us," he said, according to reports.
Munir had also threatened to destroy India's infrastructure on the Indus water channels, which could impede water flow to Pakistan, and said that the water source is not "Indians' family property". He went on to claim that the decision of India to place the Indus Waters Treaty into abeyance after the Pahalgam terror attack in April could put 250 million people at risk of starvation.
"We will wait for India to build a dam, and when it does so, phir das missile sey faarigh kar dengey [we will destroy it with 10 missiles]...The Indus River is not the Indians' family property. Humein missilon ki kami nahin hai, al-hamdulillah [we have no shortage of missiles, Praise be to God]," Munir reportedly said.
Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto also issued a threat to India claiming that the latter had caused "great damage" to Pakistan and urged Pakistanis to "unite" against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"The actions of the Indian government, under the leadership of Narendra Modi, have caused great damage to Pakistan. It is necessary that we, as a united people, stand together against PM Modi and these aggressions," Bhutto said while speaking at a function organised by the Culture Department of the government of Sindh on Monday.
He also said that Pakistan would have "no choice" but to consider war if India continues to suspend the Indus Water Treaty.
"You people (Pakistanis) are strong enough for war to get back all six rivers. If India continues on this path, it leaves us with no choice except to consider all options, including the possibility of war, to protect our national interests," he said.
He added that Pakistan will not "bow down" and that this would be a war that India would "definitely lose".
"We did not start the war. But if you think of carrying out an attack like Sindoor, then know that the people of every province of Pakistan are ready to fight you - and this is a war that you will definitely lose. We won't bow down," Bhutto warned.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also said that India would be "taught a lesson" and "will be left holding ears" if it keeps the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance. "I want to tell the enemy today that if you threaten to hold our water, then keep this in mind - you cannot snatch even one drop of Pakistan," said Sharif.
Pakistan recently praised a decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration on the design norms for India's new run-of-river hydropower projects on the Western Rivers -- Chenab, Jhelum and Indus -- saying that it vindicates its position on the Indus Water Treaty, which India has put in abeyance since the Pahalgam terror attack.
However, as a confirmation through the press briefing, India said that it never accepted the legality, legitimacy or competence of the international court.
"Its pronouncements are, therefore, without jurisdiction, devoid of legal standing, and have no bearing on India's rights to utilise the waters. India also categorically rejects Pakistan's selective and misleading references to the so-called 'award.' As reiterated in our press release dated 27 June 2025, the Indus Waters Treaty stands in abeyance by a sovereign decision of the Government of India, taken in response to Pakistan's continued sponsorship of cross-border terrorism, including the barbaric Pahalgam attack," the Ministry said.
