He warned that assured uranium supplies could allow India to divert its domestic reserves for military purposes.
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan on Thursday reiterated its demand for verifiable assurances from Kabul that its territory would not be used for terrorist activities against Pakistan.
“Since no such assurances have been received, Pakistan will continue to follow its current policy,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said at his weekly press briefing. He added that Islamabad reserves the right to respond in self-defense against cross-border attacks.
The spokesperson confirmed that two Pakistani nationals lost their lives in the UAE during the ongoing hostilities. Pakistan’s missions in the UAE, he said, have facilitated the repatriation of the deceased and are assisting the bereaved families.
He added that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had activated its crisis management unit operational round the clock, while Pakistan’s diplomatic missions in the region had set up facilitation offices, helplines and registration portals to help stranded Pakistani citizens make travel arrangements and provide consular support.
The spokesperson also expressed concerns about a recent uranium supply deal between Canada and India, saying the agreement represented a selective exception in civilian nuclear cooperation and could undermine the global non-proliferation regime.
He warned that assured supplies of uranium could allow India to divert its domestic reserves for military purposes, which could accelerate the expansion of its nuclear arsenal and worsen strategic imbalances in South Asia.
Reiterating Pakistan’s position, Andrabi said civil nuclear cooperation should be based on a non-discriminatory approach based on criteria applicable to all states outside the framework of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
