India says Pakistan nuclear arsenal should be under UN surveillance
SRINAGAR: Pakistan's nuclear arsenal should be brought under the surveillance of the UN's nuclear agency, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said Thursday, following last week's conflict between Islamabad and New Delhi.
'I wanted to raise this question for the world: are nuclear weapons safe in the hands of a rogue and irresponsible nation?' Singh told troops at a base in Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir.
'I believe that Pakistan's atomic weapons should be brought under he surveillance of IAEA. I want to say this very clearly,' he said, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
'The entire world has seen how Pakistan has irresponsibly threatened India with nuclear attacks multiple times.'
Pakistan repeatedly said during the conflict that the nuclear option was not on the table.
Singh's comments came as the nuclear-armed rivals ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades with a ceasefire announcement on Saturday.
The conflict sparked global concerns that it could spiral into a full-blown war.
The fighting began last Wednesday when India launched strikes against what it described as 'terrorist infrastructure' in Pakistan.
Pakistan immediately responded with heavy artillery fire and a four-day standoff ensued between the South Asian rivals, which left around 70 people dead on both sides.
India claims Pakistan backed an April attack in which 26 people were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir — a charge Islamabad denies.
New Delhi had earlier denied targeting Pakistan's nuclear installations during the brief conflict.
'We have not hit Kirana Hills,' Indian Air Marshal A.K. Bharti told reporters, referring to a vast rocky mountain range where, according to Indian media reports, Pakistan stores its nuclear arsenal.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Pakistan delegation in Washington says India laying foundations of first ‘nuclear water war'
ISLAMABAD: The head of a delegation visiting Washington DC to present Islamabad's position following a recent military standoff with New Delhi said on Thursday India shutting down Pakistan's water supply would be tantamount to laying the 'foundations for the first nuclear water war.' Tensions between nuclear-armed neighbors Pakistan and India are high after they struck a ceasefire on May 10 following the most intense military confrontation in decades. Both countries accuse the other of supporting militancy on each other's soil — a charge both capitals deny. The latest escalation, in which the two countries' militaries traded missile, drones and artillery fire, was sparked after India accused Pakistan of supporting militants who attacked dozens of tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22, killing 26. Islamabad denies involvement. Following the attack, Delhi unilaterally 'put in abeyance' the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960, which governs usage of the Indus river system. The accord has not been revived despite the rivals agreeing on a ceasefire on May 10. 'In the age of climate challenges that are to come, water scarcity and water wars, or anyway, used to be a theory,' Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, a former foreign minister who is heading the Pakistani delegation, said at an event at the Middle East Institute in Washington. 'India's shutting off Pakistan's water supply is laying the foundations for the first nuclear water war.' Islamabad had said after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty that it considered any attempt to stop or divert the flow of water belonging to Pakistan to be an 'act of war.' About 80% of Pakistani farms depend on the Indus system, as do nearly all hydropower projects serving the country of some 250 million. 'It is an existential crisis for us,' Bhutto Zardari said in DC. 'Any country on the planet, no matter their size, their strength, or their ability, would fight for their survival and fight for their water. India must abide by the Indus Waters Treaty.' He urged Washington and other countries not to allow India to violate the treaty or fulfil its threat of stopping Pakistan's rightful share of Indus waters. 'You cannot allow this precedent to be set in the Pakistan context, because we'll fight the first war, but it won't be the last,' Bhutto Zardari warned. 'If India is allowed to cut off our water, that means that every upper riparian with hostilities to a lower riparian now has a carte blanche.' Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the nine-member diplomatic group last month, headed by Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who has been leading a team to visits in New York, Washington DC, London and Brussels since June 2. Another delegation, led by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi, has visited Moscow. Earlier on Thursday, Bhutto Zardari's delegation met members of the US Congressional Pakistan Caucus in Washington, including Republican party leaders Jack Bergman and Ryan Zinke and Democratic leaders Tom Suozzi and Ilhan Omar, among others. 'Pakistan remains committed to peace, but sadly, India consistently resists dialogue,' Bhutto Zardari told the American lawmakers, according to a statement released by Bilawal House, his official residence. Pakistan and India, bitter rivals, have fought two out of three wars over the disputed territory of Kashmir that they both claim in full but govern only parts of.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan commits to provide basic, tactical-level training to Belarusian fighter pilots
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Air Force Chief Air Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Babar Sidhu on Thursday said the PAF was ready to support the Belarus Air Force (BAF) with basic to tactical level training, the military's media wing said, as both sides discussed military and air cooperation. Sidhu met a high-level defense delegation led by BAF and Air Defense Commander Major General Andrei Yulianovich Lukyanovich, the Pakistani military's media wing said. 'During the meeting, Chief of the Air Staff [..] assured that PAF is committed to extending full support for the basic to tactical-level training of pilots and maintenance crews for capacity building of BAF,' the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing, said in a statement. 'This includes the initiation of high-level exchange programs aimed at fostering professional development between the two air forces.' Lukyanovich expressed a strong interest in learning from the PAF's extensive operational experience in wartime operations and conveyed the BAF's eagerness to draw lessons from the PAF's combat-tested doctrines and training programs, the ISPR said. The PAF says it shot down six Indian Air Force jets on the night of May 6 while repelling Indian air attacks. India's defense chief recently admitted the country lost fighter jets to Pakistan. However, he denied six jets were shot down. The meeting takes place a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Belarusian Defense Minister Lt. Gen. Victor Khrenin in Islamabad, where the two discussed bilateral defense and technology ties. Sharif visited Belarus in April during which both countries signed a roadmap for military-technical cooperation from 2025 to 2027, along with multiple agreements in trade, defense and industrial collaboration.
Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
In meeting with US lawmakers, Pakistani delegation says Delhi resisting dialogue with Islamabad
KARACHI: A Pakistani delegation led by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met a group of American lawmakers on Thursday, telling them that India is consistently resisting dialogue to resolve bilateral issues. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif set up the delegation last month, tasking it to present Pakistan's point of view regarding the country's conflict with India last month. India and Pakistan last month engaged in four days of fighting, striking each other with missiles, drones, artillery and fighter jets before Washington brokered a ceasefire on May 10. Bhutto Zardari's delegation has held a series of meetings with top international diplomats since arriving in New York on Monday, urging the global community to help India and Pakistan enter a comprehensive dialogue to peacefully resolve their differences. On Thursday the delegation met members of the US Congressional Pakistan Caucus in Washington. These included Republican party leaders Jack Bergman and Ryan Zinke and Democratic leaders Tom Suozzi and Ilhan Omar, among others. 'Pakistan remains committed to peace, but sadly, India consistently resists dialogue,' Bhutto Zardari was quoted as saying by Bilawal House, his official residence. The former foreign minister criticized India's decision to hold in abeyance the Indus Waters Treaty, a decades-old water-sharing agreement with Pakistan. 'India has weaponized water, endangering the future of not only Pakistan but the entire region,' he said. He warned that if Indian hostility is not curbed in time, it could 'seriously jeopardize regional peace.' The Pakistani politician reaffirmed his country's desire for constructive engagement based on mutual respect and peaceful resolution of disputes, the statement said. 'The members of Congress welcomed the delegation, listened carefully to Pakistan's concerns, and expressed willingness to strengthen bilateral engagement and regional stability,' the statement concluded. Tensions between the arch-rivals began on April 22 when militants attacked a resort in Indian-administered Kashmir's Pahalgam area, killing 26 tourists. India blamed Pakistan for supporting militants involved in the attack, a charge Pakistan vehemently denied and called for a transparent, international probe into the incident. Pakistan and India, bitter rivals, have fought two out of three wars over the disputed territory of Kashmir that they both claim in full but govern only parts of. India accuses Pakistan of supporting militants in the part of Kashmir it administers. Islamabad denies the allegation and says it extends only diplomatic and moral support to the people of Kashmir.
