Washington, May 23: The World Bank has said it failed to arrive at an agreement with a visiting Pakistani delegation on a way forward to address Islamabad’s concerns regarding the Indus Waters Treaty with India.
Over two days – Monday and Tuesday – a high-powered Pakistani delegation led by Attorney General, Ashtar Ausaf Ali, met with Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank Chief Executive Officer, and the regional management for South Asia.
During the meetings, held at Pakistan’s request to discuss issues regarding the Indus Waters Treaty and opportunities within the treaty to seek an amicable resolution, “several procedural options” for resolving the disagreement over the interpretation of the treaty’s provisions were discussed, the bank said. “While an agreement on the way forward was not reached at the conclusion of the meetings, the World Bank will continue to work with both countries to resolve the issues in an amicable manner and in line with the treaty provisions,” the Bank said in a statement at the end of the talks.
“The delegation of the Government of Pakistan also shared with the Bank their concerns about the recent inauguration of the Kishanganga hydroelectric plant,” the statement said. Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the 330 MW Kishanganga hydroelectric project in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan had protested the inauguration claiming that the project on a river flowing into Pakistan will disrupt water supplies.
The Embassy of Pakistan here did not immediately respond to questions related to the World Bank meeting.
“The Indus Waters Treaty is a profoundly important international agreement that provides an essential cooperative framework for India and Pakistan to address current and future challenges of effective water management to meet human needs and achieve development goals,” the Bank said. As a signatory to the Treaty, the World Bank’s role is limited and procedural, it noted.
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