In person event
Transboundary water resources are an issue at the intersection of climate change, regional security and international law. Increasingly, these shared resources are being weaponised as regional commons, requiring cooperation but also leading to growing conflict due to some actors’ intransigence. This public event, organised by CEPS and the Mission of Pakistan to the EU, will examine how shared river basins, in particular the Indus basin in South Asia, are becoming hotspots of conflict.
The first panel will focus on the climate-society nexus, with special emphasis on Pakistan’s climate vulnerability and flooding and the responsible implementation of transboundary water agreements.
The second panel will address transboundary cooperation by integrating rule-of-law perspectives, keeping in view the Indus Waters Treaty and bringing in examples from the Mekong Delta and European water-sharing experiences.
Both panels will aim to identify concrete mechanisms for cooperation and ways to prevent escalation of an issue that goes far beyond the river basin itself.