Article IX
Dispute Resolution Mechanism
Article IX of the IWT lays out a graduated, three-tier mechanism for resolving disagreements: first through the Permanent Indus Commission, then (for technical "differences") a Neutral Expert appointed with World Bank involvement, and finally (for legal "disputes" involving treaty interpretation) a seven-member Court of Arbitration.
- The distinction between a "difference" (technical, referable to a Neutral Expert) and a "dispute" (legal/interpretive, referable to a Court of Arbitration) is central to the current impasse — Pakistan and India have disagreed on which category the Kishenganga/Ratle design questions fall into.
- Since 2016, both a Neutral Expert process (requested by India) and a Court of Arbitration process (requested by Pakistan) have run in parallel over the same underlying dispute — a situation India contends breaches the treaty's sequential design and is why it does not recognise the Court's constitution as lawful.
- The World Bank, as treaty facilitator, has stated it can only act as a facilitator and has no adjudicatory role of its own.
● Tracked since May 16, 2026 · last seen August 31, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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