India has to be scared with the recent attempts on Musharraf. They know if the radicals take him down, there's a chance, albeit small, they could overthrow the government. Would India rather face the radicals with nuclear capability or face them without it through bi-lateral disarmament.
Aint gonna happen in my lifetime. In this instance, US will not get what it wants.
US to negotiate presence in Pak nuclear facilities
deepikaglobal.com
Washington, Jan 2 (UNI) The brief detention and questioning late last month of the father of Pakistan's nuclear programme, Abdul Qadeer Khan, makes the top echelons of the country's nuclear establishment no longer exempt from scrutiny and gives Washington the ability to monitor Pakistan, according to US geopolitical analysts.
Abdul Qadeer Khan was questioned about the transfer of nuclear technology to Iran. ''This suggests that Islamabad is under extreme pressure from Washington to plug the hole that has allowed the proliferation of nuclear technology,'' the analysts at Strategic Forecasting (Stratfor) said in a South Asia situation report.
''This will lead to the United States acquiring the ability to monitor the Pakistani nuclear programme and likely will lead to increased problems for President Pervez Musharraf on the home front.
The fact that Khan has been questioned will provide Washington with a major lever in its efforts to contain the proliferation of nuclear technology.'' Qadeer Khan had restrictions imposed on his movements and was questioned December 22 about supplying technology to Iran's nuclear program. There are reports that US intelligence officials are participating in the interrogation of Khan, Stratfor said.
Given that Pakistan, which has been able to prevent Khan from being subjected to any sort of investigation, now is having to question him suggests that Islamabad is under intense pressure from Washington to plug the leak within Pakistan's nuclear establishment, it said.
''This development likely will provide the United States with some level of access and monitoring of Pakistani nuclear sites. How well such a deal is managed for public consumption will determine the level of problems it will create for President Pervez Musharraf on the domestic front.'' The investigation of Khan could allow Washington to curb the possible flow of technology to other states seeking to become nuclear powers, as well as to transnational militant non-state actors such as al Qaeda, Stratfor added.
The revelations about Pakistan's assistance to Iran's nuclear program came to light after Tehran granted the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) access to its documents and facilities. Not only was Pakistan's presence uncovered in the signature design of the centrifuge, but Tehran also handed over a list of six scientists -- two of them Pakistani -- to the United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency, Stratfor said.
Because Pakistan is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the IAEA could not officially do anything about the issue, it added. |
