No decision yet to scrap bilateral agreements with India: Pakistan

On Thursday, Pakistan’s foreign ministry announced that no official decision had been taken to annul any bilateral agreements with India, including the important 1972 Simla Agreement, in spite of rising diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

This remark followed closely after Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, termed the Simla Agreement as insignificant, labeling it a “dead document” because of India’s recent moves, especially the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.

Asif said, “The Simla Agreement is now a dead document. We are back to the 1948 position,” referencing the Line of Control (LoC) as a ceasefire line established after the first India-Pakistan war.

According to a senior Foreign Office official speaking to the Express Tribune, while India’s actions have prompted internal discussions within Pakistan, there has been no formal move to annul any agreements. “At present, there is no formal decision to terminate any bilateral accord,” the official stated, indicating that the existing bilateral agreements, including the Simla Agreement, remain in effect.”

The foreign ministry’s clarification comes after Asif’s controversial remarks, which raised questions about the future of several key agreements, including the Indus Waters Treaty. “Whether the Indus Waters Treaty is suspended or not, Simla is already over,” Asif remarked, reflecting Pakistan’s frustration with India’s recent unilateral decisions. The minister’s comments also underlined the heightened security concerns between the two nuclear-armed nations.

The Simla Agreement was signed after the 1971 war between the two countries and lays down principles meant to govern bilateral relations.

Tensions rose between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack, leading India to conduct precise strikes on terrorist facilities in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7. Pakistan made attempts to strike Indian military installations on May 8, 9, and 10. The Indian side reacted firmly to the actions taken by Pakistan.

The conflict between the two parties concluded with an agreement to cease military actions after discussions between the military operations directors general from both sides on May 10.