US, India worried over safety of Pak N-arsenal

As terrorists struck the Mehran naval base in Karachi, fears resurfaced about the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. Did the base have one of them? Could the jihadis get to them?

As terrorists struck the Mehran naval base in Karachi, fears resurfaced about the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. Did the base have one of them? Could the jihadis get to them?

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The US hasn’t yet officially reacted, but worries about Pakistan’s nuclear weapons have grown since the discovery of its abysmal proliferation record and chequered ties with terrorists.

Indian officials in Addis Ababa, where the PM is attending the Africa summit, said that although nuclear technology is
too complex to be seized through a terrorist operation, Delhi was concerned as Pakistan has set out on a huge nuclear expansion programme.
According to estimates, Pakistan has about a hundred nuclear warheads. This arsenal is said to be the fastest growing in the world, and unverified.

There are unconfirmed reports that the US has a plan to snatch the N-arms, as and when it believes they might fall into wrong hands. But these reports are widely disputed.

In New Delhi, home minister P Chidambaram said: “Any incident of terror in the region must be viewed very gravely and we must increase vigil… We have alerted states based on the information we have.”

Inputs from New Delhi