STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESSFUL NEGOTIATION OF INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES: POSITIONAL BARGAINING VS. PRINCIPLED NEGOTIATION IN THE INDUS WATER TREATY NEGOTIATIONS

Abstract

Water is the root of all civilization. Great empires of the past arose around lakes and river systems, from the Yangtze to the Nile to the Tiber. While water resources bolstered the power of world leaders, water mismanagement had the potential to lead to their downfall. Even in modern times, water availability is a significant constraint on development – the magnitude of this constraint is particularly felt in arid and semi-arid regions especially as climate change takes effect. This importance has made water supply a great source of conflict. Though it has been a cause of conflict for centuries, transboundary water management techniques permeate history. Different reports have noted that there are more than one hundred international river water basins that are shared by more than two sovereign countries, including, notably, the Nile, Mekong, Niger, Congo-Chambeshi, Amazon, Brahmaputra, and Indus Rivers