Pakistan not to compromise nuclear programme; national security indivisible: CJCSC

Rawalpindi: Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Nadeem Raza on Monday said the national security of the country was indivisible and it would not allow any compromise on a nuclear programme.

The Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), who is also Deputy Chairman of the National Command Authority, made these remarks in his keynote address at the seminar on “Regional Environment and Imperatives of Security” organised by the NUST Institute of Policy Studies (NIPS), said an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) media release.

He said Pakistan’s nuclear capability guaranteed the defence and integrity of the motherland. The CJCSC underlined that Pakistan’s nuclear program had the support of the masses and all political parties. “The civilian and military leadership stands firm with this strategic programme of the National Command Authority”, he added.

The CJCSC said, “Pakistan is a responsible and confident nuclear country. Pakistan’s policy is full-spectrum deterrence which is within the scope of reliable nuclear balance”.

He further said, “Our national security and safety mechanisms comply with all national and international regulations against all types of threats. In any case, baseless and unnecessary comments on the national strategic programme should be avoided”.

The CJCSC underscored that according to the current procedures imposed in nuclear countries, only the National Command Authority was authorized to respond and comment on strategic programmes.