The Indus and Mekong River Basins: Cooperation and Disputes
| Author | Amit Ranjan |
| Published date | 01 March 2022 |
| Date | 01 March 2022 |
| DOI | 10.1177/20578911211048247 |
| Subject Matter | Research articles |
The Indus and Mekong River
Basins: Cooperation and
Disputes
Amit Ranjan
Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore,
Singapore
Abstract
The Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and the Agreement on the Cooperation for the Sustainable
Development of the Mekong River Basin are two of the most important transboundary water
treaties signed between member states that have a history of disputes and wars. In the case
of India and Pakistan, voices to scrap the IWT in both countries are made chiefly because of
their day-to-day bitter relationships. The treaty nevertheless remains in effect. The Mekong
River Basin countries have had sour relationships in the past, and even after the agreement was
signed in 1995 some political differences and disputes between them have remained. In both
the Indus and Mekong basins, China is an important upper riparian. This article discusses the
IWT and Agreement among the Mekong basin countries and examines the convergences and
divergences between the two. It then analyses the role of China, as an upper basin to Indus
and Mekong.
Keywords
China, Indus Waters Treaty, Mekong basin, Mekong River Commission, USA
Due to the rise in population, accelerating climate change and mismanagement of water resources,
some parts of the Indus basin region are expected to witness more water shortage or even water
scarcity in the future (Ministry of Water Resources, Government of Pakistan, National Water
Policy, 2018; National Institution for Transforming India, Government of India, 2018). Such an
imminent threat has no impact on the security-centered India-Pakistan bilateral relationships.
Instead of looking at the water problems , the security related issues have enveloped the Indus
Waters Treaty (IWT) and water sharing matters between the two countries. For example, after
Corresponding author:
Amit Ranjan, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
Email: isasar@nus.edu.sg
Research article
Asian Journal of Comparative Politics
2022, Vol. 7(1) 172–185
© The Author(s) 2021
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DOI: 10.1177/20578911211048247
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