Tempers flared and urgent calls for action echoed through the United Nations Security Council chamber on October 6, 2025, as India and Pakistan clashed over the suffering of women in conflict zones and their respective roles in global peacekeeping. The open debate, convened to mark the 25th anniversary of Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS), became a stage for both countries to air longstanding grievances and assert their records on women’s rights and peace efforts.
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, delivered a pointed rebuke to Pakistan, accusing its neighbor of hypocrisy and grave human rights abuses. According to reporting from multiple outlets, Harish asserted, “A country that bombs its own people, conducts systematic genocide, can only attempt to distract the world with misdirection and hyperbole.” He referenced the infamous Operation Searchlight, launched by the Pakistani army on March 25, 1971, which, he said, involved a brutal crackdown in East Pakistan and a genocidal campaign including the mass rape of 400,000 women. “Every year, we are unfortunately fated to listen to the delusional tirade of Pakistan against my country, especially on Jammu and Kashmir, the Indian territory they covet,” Harish added, as reported by The Hindu.
Harish’s remarks were a direct response to Pakistan’s earlier intervention. Counsellor Saima Saleem of Pakistan’s Mission to the UN had called on the international community to acknowledge and address the suffering of women in conflict zones, particularly in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir and in Palestine. Saleem criticized what she described as the persistent exclusion of Kashmiri women from the WPS agenda, urging the UN to include their plight in future reports. She stated, “To exclude Kashmiri women from the Women, Peace and Security agenda erases its legitimacy and undermines its universality.”
Saleem’s speech, as detailed by Dawn, cited reports from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Médecins Sans Frontières documenting abuses in Kashmir, including arbitrary detentions, torture, and reprisals against women activists and relatives of missing persons. She painted a harrowing picture of women’s rights violations under what Pakistan terms “military occupation,” arguing that the global community must not ignore these realities. “These are not collateral tragedies but deliberate crimes that demand accountability,” Saleem told the Council, especially in reference to pregnant women in Gaza giving birth amid bombardments and shortages of water and anesthetics.
The debate was not confined to the subcontinent. Saleem also described the situation in Gaza as “one of the gravest tragedies of our times,” drawing attention to the disproportionate toll on women and children in recent conflicts. According to her, a majority of women killed in conflicts last year were in Gaza, underscoring the need for urgent international action. She further noted a 90% increase in conflict-related sexual violence over two years and a fourfold rise in women and children killed in armed conflicts, painting a grim picture of the global landscape for women in war zones.
Despite the heated exchanges, both countries sought to highlight their own contributions to the Women, Peace, and Security agenda. Ambassador Harish underscored India’s “unblemished record” on the issue and its unwavering commitment to global peace. He pointed to India’s pioneering role in UN peacekeeping, recalling that as early as the 1960s, India deployed women medical officers to the Congo—one of the earliest instances of women serving in UN peacekeeping operations. “What distinguishes India’s peacekeeping legacy is not merely the scale of our contribution, but our pioneering recognition of women as indispensable agents of peace,” Harish said, according to The Indian Express.
Harish also spotlighted India’s recent efforts to advance the WPS agenda, notably the International Conference on Women Peacekeepers from the Global South, hosted in February 2025. The event brought together women peacekeepers from 35 nations to discuss evolving challenges, including sexual exploitation, abuse, and the use of technology to enhance peacekeeping effectiveness. Far from being a mere forum for discussion, the conference aimed to develop actionable strategies to increase women’s participation and impact in future peace missions. “India remains unwavering in its commitment to the ‘Women, Peace and Security’ agenda and stands ready to share its expertise with partners, particularly those in the Global South, fostering collective solutions to shared challenges,” Harish affirmed.
Pakistan, for its part, emphasized the role of its own women peacekeepers serving in conflict zones, particularly in Africa, where they provide medical support and help rebuild communities. Saleem reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to the UN’s Gender Parity Strategy and called for mandatory representation thresholds for women in peace negotiations, arguing that inclusive peace processes are more durable and effective. “The road to peace must be built by women and men together,” she concluded, reiterating Pakistan’s call for international accountability and sustainable support for women-led organizations on the frontlines of crises.
Other UN member states and officials joined the debate, acknowledging that despite two decades of global commitments, women continue to face disproportionate harm in war zones and remain underrepresented in peace negotiations. UN officials highlighted the urgent need to strengthen women’s participation in conflict resolution and ensure accountability for gender-based violence. The gap between rhetoric and reality, many speakers agreed, remains stubbornly wide.
While the verbal sparring between India and Pakistan dominated headlines, the core issues at stake—women’s safety, agency, and participation in peace processes—struck a chord with many in the international community. The anniversary of Resolution 1325 served as a stark reminder that, for all the progress made, much work remains to ensure women are not just victims of conflict but active agents of peace. The debate also highlighted the persistent challenge of politicization within international forums, where genuine concern for human rights often becomes entangled with broader geopolitical disputes.
In the end, the Security Council session underscored both the complexity and urgency of advancing the Women, Peace, and Security agenda. As the world watches, the question remains whether the passionate words exchanged in New York will translate into meaningful action for the millions of women whose lives hang in the balance.