Srinagar (TIP)- Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal should be under the surveillance of the UN’s nuclear watchdog, Defence ninister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday May 15, , following a four-day conflict between Islamabad and New Delhi last week. Pakistan did not immediately respond to Singh’s comments, which came as the nuclear-armed rivals ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades with a ceasefire announcement.
“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. “I believe that Pakistan’s atomic weapons should be brought under the surveillance of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency),” Singh added.
The latest conflict between India and Pakistan had sparked global concerns that it could spiral into a full-blown war.
Fighting began when India launched strikes on May 7 against “terrorist camps” in Pakistan and Pakitan-occupied Kashmir following an April attack on tourists at Pahalgam in which 26 people were killed.
India has blamed Pakistan for backing the militants who were behind the attack — the deadliest on civilians in Kashmir in decades. Pakistan denies the charge.
Four days of intense tit-for-tat drone, missile and artillery exchanges ensued, leaving nearly 70 people, including dozens of civilians, dead on both sides.
Not on the table
Both India and Pakistan are nuclear powers and members of the IAEA, which regulates the use of nuclear weapons.
India has developed nuclear weapons since the 1990s in the form of intermediate-range ground-to-ground missiles. Long-range missiles are currently being tested, according to experts. Pakistan has developed short- and intermediate-range ground-to-ground and air-to-ground nuclear missiles that can carry warheads.
Pakistani ministers have repeatedly said the nuclear option was not on the table. They also stressed on Saturday that its nuclear governmental body was not summoned at any point in the recent conflict.
Pakistani military spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told reporters on Sunday that escalating conflict between “rival nuclear powers” was “inconceivable and sheer stupidity”.
“That conflict can lead to the peril of 1.6 billion people, so in reality there is no space for war between India and Pakistan,” Chaudhry said.
In a speech this week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said: “India will not tolerate any nuclear blackmail.”
India had earlier denied targeting Pakistan’s nuclear installations during the brief conflict.
“We have not hit Kirana Hills,” Indian Air Marshal AK Bharti told reporters on Sunday, referring to a vast rocky mountain range where, according to Indian media reports, Pakistan stores its nuclear arsenal.
Fearing further escalation, global leaders had urged restraint from the arch-enemies with US President Donald Trump announcing the surprise truce.
The ceasefire has held since the weekend, following initial claims of violations from both sides.
In a statement, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan Thursday said these “irresponsible remarks reveal his profound insecurity and frustration” regarding Pakistan’s effective defence.
“Pakistan’s conventional capabilities are adequate to deter India, without the self-imposed ‘nuclear blackmail’ that New Delhi suffers,” Khan said.
“The comments of India’s Defence Minister also show his sheer ignorance of the mandate and responsibilities of a specialised agency of the United Nations like the IAEA,” the spokesperson said.
Earlier, speaking to the troops, Rajnath said Operation Sindoor showed India’s capability to take bold decisions.
“Operation Sindoor was a commitment demonstrated by India of not just carrying out defence, but taking bold decisions whenever needed. It was a dream of every soldier that we will reach every terrorist hideout and destroy them. Terrorists killed Indians based on their religion, we killed them for their deeds. It was our dharma to eliminate them. Our forces gave right direction to their anger and took revenge for Pahalgam with great courage & discretion,” he said.
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