SIPRI reports say nuclear proliferator Pakistan is expanding its Nuclear Weapons program

SIPRI or Stockholm International Peace Research Institute recently released some reports about the state of nuclear weapons across the globe. One of the reports says that Pakistan is increasing its capacity to produce plutonium for use in nuclear weapons. Another SIPRI report also states that the number of nuclear weapons in Pakistan has crossed the figure that India possesses.

Although India is not worried about the growing atomic arsenal of Pakistan as its own stockpile is enough to create a nuclear deterrence not only for Pakistan but also for China. However, what is worrying is the global implications that the unholy Pakistan-China proliferation nexus brings.

In February 2020, the Indian authorities at Kandla port seized equipment on the way from China to Pakistan. Although Beijing tried to show it as a device meant for civilian implementation, it had ‘dual-use’. The equipment was being sent to Pakistan for enhancing its nuclear weapons program. Also, the story of nuclear smuggler Dr. A.Q Khan, who is a national hero in Pakistan, is another glaring example of the Pak-China nuclear black marketing nexus.

Iran nuclear program is a talking point in international geopolitics these days. However, it is to be noted that it was Pakistan who proliferated nuclear technology to Iran. Moreover, in the 1980s' several Western intelligence agencies and even America's CIA had warned the world of the impending danger in Iran due to Pakistani proliferation. But the West, especially the US government of the day, chose to overlook the intel reports as they were in love with Pakistan due to the ongoing Cold War. It thus implies that the Iran crisis of today, which threatens Israel, Saudi Arabia and UAE the most, is a making of Pakistan.

Pakistan's nuclear black marketing had created a similar crisis in Libya, with the Pakistanis selling banned nuclear military technology to then Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Besides, collusion in atomic and missile technologies between Pakistan and North Korea, another rogue state, has also been exposed quite a few times. In fact, both Pakistan and North Korea are China's vassal states.

In the month of April, Norway had reportedly raised the alarm over unhindered exploitation of dual-use technology by Pakistan to aid its nuclear program. Even in December last year, Czech Republic's intelligence agency, Security Information Service, reported a surge in nuclear proliferation from Pakistan. Earlier, Germany too had raised similar concerns.

Recently, it is getting clearer that if the world continues to turn a blind eye to terror state Pak, Turkey may end up with Pakistani nukes threatening not only the whole of Middle East but also entire Europe, even Russia. Moreover, the danger of Pakistan's nuclear weapons falling into the hands of radical terror groups looms large. As world powers continue to ignore Pakistan-China nuclear nexus, a common man sees Pakistan as a ticking time bomb that will explode sooner or later.