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Pakistan calls P-5 joint statement on preventing nuclear war as positive step

By Zahid Shah

ISLAMABAD (TSAT) - Pakistan on Thursday welcomed the joint statement of the P-5 on Preventing Nuclear War and Avoiding Arms Races is a positive development.

In a statement, issued from the Foreign Ministry of Pakistan, the spokesperson called it a positive development and said this understanding among the permanent members of the UN Security Council can pave the way for concrete measures for strategic stability at the global and regional levels.

"As a responsible nuclear weapons State, Pakistan supports the objectives of global and non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, in line with the stipulations of the First Special Session on Disarmament of the UN General Assembly (SSOD-I) – with equal and undiminished security being the defining consideration," said the spokesperson.

He added that the P-5 statement rightly acknowledges the imperative of creating conducive security environment for meaningful progress on nuclear disarmament.

"This will include addressing the underlying security concerns of States, pacific settlement of outstanding disputes, and cessation of destabilizing arms build ups that accentuate asymmetries," he said.

While talking about the South Asia region, he said that In the context of South Asia, Pakistan's proposal for a Strategic Restraint Regime, encompassing nuclear and missile restraint, conventional balance and settlement of disputes, can contribute significantly towards maintaining strategic stability and avoiding military conflict. This will also entail eschewing misplaced notions of space for war in a nuclearized environment.

"Pakistan fully agrees with the need for effective measures by all nuclear powers to guard against any unauthorized or unintended use of nuclear weapons."

On Jan. 3, China, Russia, the US, UK and France, in a joint statement said that they consider the avoidance of war between Nuclear-Weapon States and the reduction of strategic risks as our foremost responsibilities.

"We affirm that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought. As nuclear use would have far-reaching consequences, we also affirm that nuclear weapons—for as long as they continue to exist—should serve defensive purposes, deter aggression, and prevent war. We believe strongly that the further spread of such weapons must be prevented," said the joint statement.