The Foreign Office Thursday took strong exception to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's threatening statement to stop water flow into Pakistan and warned that any such attempt will be deemed as an act of aggression with a right to respond.

Speaking at his weekly media briefing, Spokesperson Foreign Office Dr Mohammad Faisal Pakistan has exclusive rights on the waters of three western rivers under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT).

He made it clear that any attempt by India to divert the flow of western rivers will be considered an act of aggression and Pakistan has the right to respond.

"Such statements coming from the Indian leadership are another glaring example of the fact that Modi government is bent upon making India an irresponsible aggressor state that has no regard for human rights and international obligations," he said.

He further said that such provocative statements should be an eye opener for the world which must realize the extremist government of Modi is a clear threat to peace in South Asia and the world.

Modi on Tuesday threatened to stop Pakistan's water by diverting it to Haryana. "For 70 years, water that belonged to Haryana's farmers and to us flowed to Pakistan... But this Modi will stop that water and bring it to your house. I have already started working on it. The water belongs to India and farmers of Haryana. That is why Modi is fighting this for you," Modi was quoted by Indian media to have told a rally on Tuesday.

To a question, Dr Faisal confirmed that the upcoming visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been postponed for the time being and it will be rescheduled. He said that Pakistan and Turkey have deep brotherly relations and both the countries maintain regular leadership level contacts.

When asked to comment on the Turkey's launching of offensive against the Kurds in Northern Syria, he said: "We appreciate Turkey's positive role in finding a viable political solution to the conflict in Syria. We also acknowledge Turkey's humanitarian efforts by graciously hosting over 3.5 million Syrian refugees."

He further stated that Pakistan recognizes Turkey's legitimate security concerns in the region, adding that like Pakistan, Turkey has also been a victim of terrorism.

He said that Pakistan has been and continues to support the territorial integrity of Syria and expresses the hope that a political solution to the Syrian conflict will be reached at the earliest, that takes into account concerns of all regional stakeholders and parties to the conflict.

Referring to the situation in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the spokesperson strongly condemned the blatant human rights violations in the occupied valley, adding that the humanitarian nightmare in the held valley is worsening with continued military lockdown and complete communications blockade.

He said eight million people in Occupied Kashmir remain cut off from the rest of the world, adding that these inhumane and unilateral actions by India are continuing in spite of international condemnation.

He said India, in a state of panic and in the face of international criticism, is falsely trying to claim normalcy whilst continuing with gross human rights violations in the valley.

He said the revocation of special status of Occupied Kashmir has pushed India into the blind alley and it is not finding way to come out of this situation. He said the world leaders at present are demanding the resolution of this festering dispute. He said resolution of the dispute lies in the plebiscite as per the UN Security Council resolutions.

Responding to a question, the spokesperson rejected the perception that the efforts for sensitizing the international community over situation in Kashmir have slowed down for the last few days, adding that Prime Minister Khan during his recent visits to China, Saudi Arabia and Iran highlighted the plight of Kashmiri people and the Indian atrocities and human rights violations. He said that it a continued process and Pakistan is making every effort to highlight the Indian illegal actions at every international forum.

About Kartarpur Corridor, the spokesperson said Pakistan has almost completed work on the corridor, adding that further details about the inauguration of the corridor will be shared in due time.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019