By The South Asia Times

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan on Thursday expressed concern over a newly concluded agreement between India and Canada on long-term uranium supply and cooperation in nuclear reactor technologies, warning that the arrangement could undermine global non-proliferation efforts and destabilize the strategic balance in South Asia.

In a statement, the spokesperson for Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tahir Andrabi, said Islamabad had “noted with concern” the agreement, which reportedly includes cooperation on small modular reactors and advanced nuclear technologies.

He described the arrangement as “another country-specific exception” in the field of civil nuclear cooperation, arguing that it raises serious questions about the fairness and credibility of the global non-proliferation framework.

Pakistan pointed to the historical context of India’s Smiling Buddha nuclear test in 1974, noting that the nuclear test was conducted using plutonium produced in a reactor originally supplied by Canada for peaceful purposes. The incident, Islamabad said, directly contributed to the creation of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a body designed to regulate nuclear exports and prevent proliferation.

“A state whose actions necessitated the establishment of global export controls is now being granted preferential access under selective arrangements,” the statement said.

Pakistan also noted that India has not placed all of its civilian nuclear facilities under safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency, nor has it made binding commitments to do so under the new arrangement. Several facilities, the spokesperson said, remain outside international inspection.

Islamabad further warned of potential strategic implications. According to the statement, guaranteed external uranium supplies could allow India to divert its domestic uranium reserves for military purposes, potentially expanding fissile material production and accelerating the growth of its nuclear arsenal.

Such developments, Pakistan argued, could deepen existing asymmetries in the strategic balance in South Asia.

In a follow-up post on social media platform X, Andrabi also questioned India’s broader non-proliferation commitments, noting that New Delhi has not signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and has not issued a binding pledge against nuclear testing.

“CTBT rejection, no binding ‘no-test pledge’, no full IAEA oversight, and blurred civil-military nuclear lines — yet a supplier state cut bilateral deals with India, letting commerce override imperatives of non-proliferation and regional stability,” he wrote.

Pakistan reiterated its long-standing position that civil nuclear cooperation should follow a non-discriminatory, criteria-based approach, particularly for countries that are not parties to the Treaty on the Non‑Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Selective exceptions, the statement concluded, risk weakening the global non-proliferation regime and could have broader implications for regional and international security.