Reality behind Revitalization of the US-India Cooperation against Pak Nukes

By Sajjad Shaukat

In his article “US-India Pact To Address A Loose Nuke Contingency In Word’s Most Dangerous Country, Pakistan”, Indian Colonel Deepak Kumar the Chair of Defence Services at Observer Research Foundation left no stone unturned against Pakistan in distorting facts, emphasizing on US-India cooperation against Pak Nukes.

Ignoring reality, Col. Deep Kumar wrote: “India has, as its immediate neighbor, one of the most dangerous nations in the world. The vandalism and arson in the Lahore Corps Commanders’ residence and the GHQ in Rawalpindi were enduring images of the anarchy that overwhelmed the already nebulous law and order situation in Pakistan…[after] the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan. If the protestors could reach and enter the heavily guarded and fortified GHQ, there would be nothing stopping the ideologically motivated and better-trained Islamist terrorists…laying control over the numerous nuclear sites of Pakistan…the Armageddon moment for the world? Are Pakistan’s nuclear weapons and associated systems as safe as Pakistan has been claiming for decades?”

He allegedly wrote: “Pakistan is an unstable country and the epicenter of global Jihad. It has an abysmal record of nuclear proliferation. The protests by Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Tahrik-e- Insaf [PTI] have thrown the country into chaos and anarchy…There are legitimate worries of anyone concerned with the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. Almost the entire world is concerned…but the immediate concern is to India and US, whom the various Islamist groups operating in the region consider their enemy…[Especially] With the Tahrik-e-Taliban Pakistan [TTP] gaining the upper hand, particularly in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa [KP] province in recent months, there are legitimate worries about the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons.”

As part of the propaganda report, giving various fictitious references of the entities such as the Annual Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community and the US President Joe Biden’s statement who said on October 15, 2022 that Pakistan was “one of the most dangerous nations in the world” because it has “nuclear weapons without any cohesion.”

Col. Deepak allegedly described: “President Obama had said that the greatest threat to US security in the short, medium, and long term remained from terrorists armed with nuclear weapons. Militants have already targeted at least six facilities assessed to be associated with Pakistan’s nuclear program. From Bush to Obama to Biden, successive US presidents have been concerned about the security of Pakistan’s nuclear assets.” Showing contradiction, Col. Deepak also indicated: “No wonder the US has planned to seize, snatch and disarm Pakistan’s nuclear assets in various contingencies…Pakistan [also], however, apprehends that the US has plans to snatch and seize its nukes primarily.”

The writer further wrote: “Therefore, India and the US need to continuously evaluate the situation and update the contingency plans to address this critical security problem affecting the region and the world. The US is alive to this threat and maintains rapid regional deployment forces to address such a contingency. However, India is a possible target of any such rogue action, must lay out joint plans with the US for such a contingency. India’s Special Forces are one of the most competent and well-trained; they are extremely familiar with Pakistan…US technological prowess in remote disablement of nuclear weapons and India’s rapid response due to its proximity can augment any such US effort to achieve the desired aim of quick seize, snatch, containment, and disablement operation, given the magnitude of such a country-wide operation”.

Col. Deepak concluded by saying: “India and the US need to continuously evaluate the situation and update the contingency plans to address this critical security problem affecting the region and the world.” Neglecting his another contradiction, he added: “Critics would say since the US and India are not part of a military alliance, how can they act against Pakistan but it is worthwhile to note that a nuclear crisis is beyond any such alliance politics as it threatens world peace. Additionally, US and India regularly undertake joint counter-terror and HADR drills, and such an operation can well fit into this gamut”.

Nevertheless, we need to know the reality behind revitalization of the US-India cooperation against Pak Nukes, as elaborated by the Indian writer Col. Deepak Kumar.

In this respect, regarding the vandalism and arson in the Lahore Corps Commanders’ residence and the GHQ in Rawalpindi, including other military installations on May 9, this year after the arrest of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister-Chairman of the PTI, in a news release, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on May 10, 2023 clarified that in the wider interest of Pakistan, Army showed extreme patience, tolerance and restraint, without caring about its reputation.

In a press conference on May 26, this year, Director General (DG) of ISPR Maj-Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry announced the dismissal of three army officers, including a lieutenant general among 11 high-ranking officials from service in disciplinary action taken in response to their failure to safeguard security installations, and as a part of the military’s “self-accountability process” into the events of May 9.

A regards Biden’s misperceptions against Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, his statement ignited anger and condemnation by Islamabad.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-leader of the PML-N of the ruling PDM coalition on October 15, 2022 strongly rejected the statement of the US president, terming it contrary to facts and misleading. PM stated that Pakistan has proven to be a most responsible nuclear state over the decades. He added the country’s nuclear program is managed through a “technically sound and foolproof command and control system.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed a “strong” demarche to the US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome following President Biden’s remarks over Islamabad’s nuclear programme.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari stated that there was “cause for concern for India’s nuclear weapons programme, not Pakistan’s…as recently it [India] accidentally fired a missile into Pakistani territory.”

Imran Khan too condemned the Biden’s statement, calling it a total failure of the “imported government’s foreign policy” and its claims of a reset of relations with the US.

In the Corps Commanders’ Conference, chaired by the then army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the military top brass rebuffed comments from the US president Biden.

In fact, being the only nuclear country in the Islamic World, Pakistan is on the hit-list of America, India and Israel as well as some Western countries which are creating unrest in the country and want to throw the country into chaos and anarchy. Therefore, they continue a deliberate propaganda campaign against the safety of these weapons in order to obtain their selfish aims to ‘denuclearise’ Pakistan.

In this regard, on October 25, 2017, a launch-ceremony of the book “Neighbors in Arms: An American Senator Quest for Disarmament on Nuclear Subcontinent”, written by Larry Pressler, former US Senator, was organized at Hudson Institute, Washington DC. The speakers included anti-Pakistan entities like Hussain Haqqani who has also served as the Pakistani ambassador to USA stated: “US should declare Pakistan a state sponsoring terrorism; Pakistan is more dangerous country than North Korea; Pakistan does not have a clear nuclear chain of command.”

It is notable that in 2009 when the heavily-armed Taliban entered Pakistan’s towns of Swat, Dir and Buner, American-led top officials and their media had exaggerated the ‘Talibinisation’ of whole Pakistan, while indicating concerns about country’s atomic arms. In that context, on April 22, 2009, the then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had stated that Taliban “advances pose “an existential threat” to Pakistan, while on April 23, 2009, she had warned that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of terrorists.

When Pakistan’s armed forces ejected the Taliban insurgents out of Swat, Dir and Buner by breaking their spine—capturing many militants, then, American top officials had admired the capabilities of Pakistan Army.

Similarly, when militants had attacked on Pakistan’s Naval Airbase in Karachi on May 23, 2011, the US-led these entities, especially New Delhi manipulated the situation by spreading disinformation about the security of Pak nukes.

The Taliban fighters on August 15, 2021 entered the Afghan capital Kabul and seized power, taking control of Afghanistan. Earlier, based in Afghanistan, American CIA, Indian RAW and Israeli Mossad which had well-established their covert networks there were well-penetrated in the terrorist outfits like the TTP, and were using them to weaken Pakistan by arranging the subversive activities as well sectarian and ethnic violence in various cities of the country. Now, these foreign entities have also started supporting the Islamic State group (Also known as Daesh, ISIS, ISIL) to destabilize Pakistan.

It is mentionable that before the start of the military operation Zarb-e-Azb (Sharp and Cutting strike), Pakistan had been facing various kinds of terrorism related attacks, being conducted by the AI-Qaeda, TTP and other militant outfits.

Pakistan’s armed forces have successfully broken the backbone of the foreign-backed terrorists by the military operations Zarb-e-Azb and Radd-ul-Fasaad (Elimination of Discord). And top intelligence agency ISI has broken the network of these terrorist groups by capturing several militants, while thwarting a number of terror attempts. Peace has been restored in various regions of Pakistan.

But, in the recent past, terrorist attacks in KP province and the province of Balochistan which is central point of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and is part of China’s One Belt, One Road (OBOR) or BRI show that the CIA-RAW and Mossad are weakening Pakistan and want to damage the CPEC project.

Taking cognizance of the latest terror assaults by the TTP on Police in KP in Lakki Marwat Bannu Cantt, Counter-Terrorism Department  in Bannua, deadly suicide blast at a mosque in the Peshawar Police Lines, which martyred many persons of the security forces, and civilians, including terror attacks in Balochistan, a high-level Pakistani delegation led by Defense Minister Khawaja Asif along with Lt. Gen. Nadeem Ahmed Anjum—head of the ISI, and other senior officials visited Kabul on February 22, 2023 with the main agenda of countering terrorism and the use of Afghanistan soil by the TTP militants.

The GDI-Afghan intelligence agency briefed Pakistani delegation and accepted the problem of terrorism originating from Afghanistan soil. They also presented details of the solution, but was found unsatisfactory. Hence, Islamabad warned Afghan Taliban administration that if TTP involved in cross-border attacks are not eliminated, Pakistan would take action against them within Afghanistan.

It is noteworthy that Indian nuclear weapons and their related-material are unprotected, as various cases of smuggling and theft have verified.

In July 1998, India’s Central Bureau of Investigation seized eight kg. of uranium from Arun, an engineer in Chennai, including two other engineers. It was reported that the uranium was stolen from an atomic research center. On November 7, 2000, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) pointed out that Indian police had seized 57 pounds of uranium and arrested two men for illicit trafficking of radioactive material. IAEA indicated that Indian civil nuclear facilities were vulnerable to thefts.

In this context, Kashmir Media Service (KMS) News Org pointed out on February 22, 2022: “Frequent incidents of uranium theft in India pose threats of nuclear terrorism as over 200 kilograms of nuclear material have been stolen during the past two decades in India while 2.5 kilograms of unprocessed uranium were caught from two Indian nationals in Nepal just a few days ago. Experts on nuclear safeguards have urged the International Atomic Energy Agency to place strict surveillance system over radio-active materials in India.”

On January 26, 2003, CNN disclosed that Indian company, NEC Engineers Private Ltd. shipped 10 consignments to Iraq, containing highly sensitive equipment including titanium vessels and centrifugal pumps. Indian investigators acknowledged that the company falsified customs documents to get its shipments out of India. On June 12, 2004, Berkeley Nucleonics Corporation, an American company was fined US $ 300,000 for exporting a nuclear component to the Bhaba Atomic Research Center in India.

In December 2005, Indian scientists, Dr. Surendar and Y S R Prasad had been blacklisted by the US due to their involvement in nuclear theft. In December, 2006, container packed with radioactive material had been stolen from an Indian fortified research atomic facility near Mumbai.

However, owing to the collaboration of the Indian officials with smugglers, proliferation of nuclear components and their related-material have continued from time to time.

While, under the pretext of countering China, Washington has continued favouring India’s programme of advancement and modernization of nuclear weapons. America also pressurized IAEA and the Nuclear Suppliers Group to grant a waiver to New Delhi for obtaining civil nuclear trade on larger scale.

It is worth-mentioning that Islamabad has substantially strengthened its nuclear security in the past two decades with zero incidents of mishap. Terrorist’s organisations do not have any access to Pakistan’s nuclear assets. In this connection, ex-President Obama, American high officers and IAEA officials have acknowledged effective command and control mechanism enforced by Pakistan.

It is of particular attention that in November 2020 at a joint press conference, DG ISPR Maj Gen (now Lt-Gen.) Babar Iftikhar and the then Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi unveiled a dossier containing “irrefutable evidence” of India’s sponsorship of terrorism in Pakistan—also targeting the CPEC. Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN Munir Akram had handed over the dossier to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. In its 27th report, dated 3 February 2021 and the 28th report, published in the recent past, the UN Security Council’s monitoring team for tracking terrorist groups confirmed Pakistan’s dossier, and drew attention to the increasing cross-border terrorist threat to Pakistan.

Regarding various terror assaults, the then Foreign Minister Qureshi had remarked that if the international community had taken timely notice of Islamabad’s concerns over New Delhi’s involvement in terrorist activities across Pakistan, Lahore’s Johar Town blast and several terrorist incidents in Balochistan would not have taken place.

Notably, since the fanatic Narendar Modi, the leader of the biased ruling party BJP, became Indian prime, he started implementing ideology of Hindutva (Hindu Nationalism). Under his regime, various developments like unprecedented rise of Hindu extremism, persecution of religious minorities such as Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, assaults on their places of worships and property—even targeting lower cast-Hindus, forced conversions of other religious minorities into Hindus, creation of war-like situation with Pakistan etc. have clearly proved that encouraged by the Hindu fundamentalist outfits such as BJP, RSS VHP, Bajrang Dal and Shiv Sena have been promoting religious and ethnic chauvinism in India by propagating ideology of Hindutva.

Indian forces have broken all previous records of gross human rights abuses inside India, while on August 5, 2019, PM Modi’s government ended special status of the Jummu and Kashmir by abolishing articles 35A and 370 of the Constitution to turn Muslim majority into minority. Indian government bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories—Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to be ruled by the federal government. On the same day, strict military lockdown was imposed on the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) which continues unabated.

It is worth-mentioning that the Bajrang Dal is the militant youth wing of the VHP. According to the BBC, “India’s state-run TV channel Doordarshan recently had an unusual programme-it telecast live the annual speech of Mohan Bhagwat, the head of the right-wing Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (National Volunteers’ Organisation). It’s a group many believe to be a shadowy and violent Hindu organisation with umbilical ties to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)…Critics, however, say the organisation continues to be a sectarian, militant group, which believes in the “supremacy of Hindus” and “preaches hate” against Muslim and Christian minorities.”

And numerous incidents of intimidation, harassment, assaults and violence as well custodial deaths by the Hindu fanatics in connection with minorities have come to the limelight of various human rights groups and international media.

Nonetheless, while distorting facts, Col. Deepak Kumar has totally ignored reality behind revitalization of the US-India cooperation against Pak nukes.

Sajjad Shaukat writes on international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants, Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations

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