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| India-Pakistan |
| Has US seized Pak N-arms? |
| 2002-05-27 |
| Thanks to reader Brian Hoffman, who tipped me to this: The missile tests by Pakistan could indicate that the Americans have taken charge of the country’s nuclear warheads. President Prevez Musharraf, in his speech on September 19, had said if he did not join the US alliance, Pakistan's strategic assets – nuclear warheads and missiles – would be under threat. The tests have been done for domestic reasons. The country is under tremendous world pressure to climb down on its policy on terrorism vis-a-vis India. And the government would want to demonstrate to the people that it is not yielding. It is, therefore, compensating a possible climbdown through more tests. The tests, themselves, are superfluous. Ghauri and Shaheen are already tested and proven Chinese and North Korean missiles. The fact that they are being tested over land and inhabited areas proves the point further. The Americans, meanwhile, cannot trust Pakistan with both missiles and nuclear warheads. Given the Pakistani hatred for them, they fear the weapons may be turned against them, to attack their bases in Afghanistan and aircraft carriers in the region. The US counter-proliferation policy would be totally meaningless if the US forces deployed there permit Pakistan to use nuclear weapons. That's an interesting story. There were rumors of that very thing back in October before and after the strikes on Afghanistan began. I don't know how true the reports were, and the current article may be nothing more than Indian wishful thinking. I'd be surprised if we hadn't made some move in that direction, just as surprised if the Paks acquiesced. I'd imagine that both sides have the other's nuclear arsenals pinpointed as well as they can, and that they'll try and take them out by conventional means early in hostilities. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |