Dawn.com invites its readers to debate current affairs in this forum.
The Pakistan government continues to maintain that security around its stockpile of nuclear weapons is ‘second to none.’ The top US military officer Mike Mullen has gone on record as saying that his country is ‘comfortable’ with Pakistan’s nuclear safety.
But with the growing threat from the Taliban and related militants, how safe do you think the arsenal really is? Do you trust the government and armed forces to safeguard the country’s nuclear weapons?
I do not have doubts about the cabability of Pakistan Army. But i am afraid those currently in power can create a risk for assets
Pakistan’s nukes are safe alrite, but the men who are responsible for its safety are not. I think there is a little bit of taliban in each of them.
We must accept that the protection of our nukes is a real issue now. We have surrendered to them in Swat and we are on back-foot in NWFP. We were helpless spectators to what happened in Jamrud and Lahore. We are divided within – politically and militarily. The real fear is that their one intensive blitz can trigger a total crumble of our security apparatus. Militarily we failed in NWFP and our intelligence failed us in Lahore. For them the most coveted goal will be our nukes, even in absence of delivery system, as thereby they achieve almost an invincible strategic advantage. Tracing their winning series we must accept they are planners, resourceful and strategists irrespective of who they are and who is behind them. We have a killer on our turf. Our failings in our self-protection are evident. In this perspective, western concerns should be understood by us. We have to be realistic, proactive and stop their this overwhelming onslaught through simultaneous application of selective reconciliation, welfare & development and well-thought off military actions. We are a resource-rich nation of potentials of peace, strength and prosperity – the goals not far-off provided we can pull ourselves together NOW.
No our nukes are not safe
As I see it the Nukes is key reason why pakistan has been dragged into the war on terror. Instability in pakistan will let the nukes fall in the hands of the taliban, thats is the worse thing for US. That is the very reason why so much aid is getting injected into pakistan. While eliminating taliban is the long term objective, the short term and a continuing objective is nothing but make sure that there is nukes dont fall in the wrong hands.
From mumbai attacks to recent attacks can all fall in the same line if you look things from Nuke angle. No body gains from discrediting any nation and everybody knows thats not a real gain. The real gain if indo-pak happens is nothing but a formation of new alliance between pak and taliban, which can ultimately lead nukes falling in hands of taliban. Though Pakistan dont want this, this is dream of Taliban. The best thing need by taliban is people start blaming external forces for all that happen inside pakistan, which will lead to more sympathy for Taliban cause. Added to this is the religious angle, which is the whole launchpad of taliban activity. The reality is there is a huge of lot of reluctance from people to believe that Pakistan is in bad shape. This is stemmed by the strong belief that pakistan cannot lose and God will not let pakistan lose.
In light of these tense times, the government and army should be a bit more transparent about nuclear safety with the public. I am a resident of Pakistan and I know little about what security provisions are in place to ensure that our nukes are not stolen, misused or damaged in a way to cause serious health hazards for the local population.
Assurances from US generals and Paki govt officials is not enough for me to sleep easy at night. I’m a thinking, informed Pakistani and I’d like some details about the technologies the government has invested in. I realize that for security reasons full details cannot be disclosed, but some indication of what makes our nukes safe would be appreciated.
I also think that our nuclear arsenal is in safe hands. Our armed forces are very well capable of safeguarding our nuclear weapons and can use them whenever it will be necessary to.
But I think there is threat to our nukes not from inside, its from the outside, the west, especially America. American Generals have now at least started commenting that our nukes are safe or not. I foresee that someday they will be saying opposite to that. The debate has started about our nukes safety which could lead to something bad for Pakistan.
Swat has been handed over to the hardcore terrorists, Peshawar and all the major NWFP cities are under siege, situation in Balochistan is worsening day by day, bombs, suicide attacks and armed raids on highly secured buildings have become routine matters and I still see people talking about the competence, credibility and sincerity of pak army and our government. Not now but in the near future the same talibans are likely to take over everything and people like Qazi Hussein and Fazlurrahman will declare them national heros.
No doubt Pakistan Army has the best in manpower and technology to protect its nuclear assets.
I understand that US is the only country whose nuclear assets where stolen and given to Israel. So we should ask them rather their assets are safe from Zionist extremist or not?
The Pakistan Nuclear Energy Commission is an independent institution. It does not come under the Government of Pakistan. Pakistan Army is Responsible of Protecting it. So we should not be scared of our capable leaders doing anything to it. Nuclear weapons are not AK-47 which any one can grab and start firing from. There is a whole process which has to be completed to fire a Nuke. The Nukes are not in one place but are scattered around and many parts have to be combined, and the bomb has to be armed to fire it. Doing all this is not something easy, only professionals can do it.
The idea of our nukes falling into Taliban is a propaganda of one of our neighbors in the East and friends in the West. As mentioned by Ali Hassan, we have a clean record of handling Nukes. The tragic Bhopal incident happened in our neighbors, why don’t people question them about the safety of their nukes. We are a responsible country and can and InshAllah will keep our nukes in safe hands.
Let the jingoists keep whining. They want to ”de-fang” us but we cant be de-fanged.
We just need to unite and be proud of who we are and what we have. Allah has been kind to us. Lets be kind to ourselves and serve our interests and what is right for our nation.
nobody can stop us from seeking technology, innovation, or betterment of society. The nukes dont benefit our society, but they do guarantee our security from foreign attacks –especially those from certain nearby hostile nations.
Pakistan is here to stay. We are a heavily armed and proud nation of 170 million people. Some enemies cant accept that. That is their problem, not ours.
God bless Pakistan
God bless the Armed Forces of Pakistan
God bless all my Pakistani brothers and sisters…
And by the way, who is Mullen to be comfortable with Pakistan’s nuclear safety?
Who gave him the authority to question a Nation’s credibility. We have fallen to the extent that every Tom, Dick and Harry has now started questioning us.
We must stand tall against all comers, the time has come to put an end to the failed policies of the past.
God Bless Pakistan and long live Pakistan.
Never mind about what anyone says. American can and will continue to keep changing its policies about Pakistan. We as a nation must have confidence in ourselves. It’s our duty to maintain our nukes securely like any other country that possess them. I am sure and so is the whole nation that those experts taking care of security are very competent. Islamic Republic of Pakistan and its nationals owe them a lot of thanks.
why is the Dawn group conducting such a forum about Pak nuke saftey?
are they not indirectly promoting the propaganda whats our enemy telling the world?
It is completely absurd and ludicrous to say that our nukes will ever go in the hands of Taliban. I surely don’t trust the Govt of safeguarding them but i do trust the Army.
I am not supporting Pak Army here but making a point that at least we still have some Stalwarts amongst the ranks.
Rather than listening to the likes of Mullens and Bouchers and Milibands, we better start working together to bring peace to the country.
Had we been strong internally, people wouldn’t stand a chance to pry in our affairs. But when a country’s leadership lacks vision, the results are fall all to see.
yes i agree that pakistani officials safeguard their nukes very well. pakistani authorities and pakistani army, scientists are capable. These atom bombs provide security to pakistani nation, and prevents direct foreign invasions.
No sir i don’t trust this president and his men to protect the country. The records of those in power speak for themselves.
There is not question the nukes are safe. Always have been, and always will be. Unlike some western countries we have never:
a.) used nuclear weapons
b.) misplaced nuclear weapons, in odd ends of the worlds including the antarctic
c.) ‘accidentally’ send parts to other countries
d.) had naval accidents involving nuclear weapons onboard.
We are a nuclear armed country with the means to deliver the arms. But we arent as reckless as people make us out to be.
Yes, I think, our nukes are safe. our armed forces are capable of doing anything provided they have enough resources.