Pakistan Suspends All Bilateral Agreements And Trade Activities, Closes Airspace For Indian Flights

Most of the steps announced by Pakistan after a meeting of the National Security Committee chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad were tit-for-tat responses to measures announced by India on Wednesday. Pakistan rejected India’s decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 and said any stopping or diversion of the flow of water belonging to Pakistan under the pact will be seen as an “act of war” and responded to with “full force”.

India’s punitive measures, including the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, closing of the only operational land border crossing and expulsion of Pakistani military attaches, were decided by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) a day after terrorists gunned down the tourists in a picturesque meadow, marking the worst attack on civilians in Jammu and Kashmir in nearly two decades.

A statement from the Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office said the country’s “airspace will be closed with immediate effect for all Indian owned or Indian operated airlines”, and that trade with India, including to and from any third country through Pakistan, will be suspended forthwith.