———- ‘‘There is no justification for sanctions imposed on us,” says Premier while referring to Washington’s
———-Adds nuclear capability was only meant for defence
———-Laments Washington’s sanctions for lacking justification
———- Reaffirms resolve against terrorism
———-Expresses hope for PTI talks
By Anzal Amin
ISLAMABAD: Reacting to the sanctions imposed by the United States (US), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has out-rightly ruled out the prospects of any compromise on the country’s nuclear programme.
“There is no justification for the sanctions imposed on us [….] There will be no compromise on Paki-stan’s nuclear programme,” said the PM while speaking at a federal cabinet meeting on Tuesday in Is-lamabad.
The premier’s remarks come as President Joe Biden’s administration, last week, announced imposing additional sanctions related to Pakistan’s ballistic missile programme, targeting four entities that it said were contributing to the proliferation or delivery of such weapons.
The move warranted a strong reaction from the Foreign Office, which termed the move “biased” and warned that it could have dangerous implications for the strategic stability of the region and beyond.
The sanctions, pursuant to Executive Order (EO) 13382, were later deliberated on US Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer who said that Pakistan was developing long-range ballistic missile capabilities that eventually could allow it to strike targets outside of South Asia, including the US. Speaking at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Finer remarked that Islamabad’s con-duct raised “real questions” about its intentions.
The remarks were once again responded to by the FO which called them “perplexing as well as illogi-cal”.
Touching upon the issue a day earlier while speaking to media, FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch noted that US sanctions on Pakistan’s missile programme were unwarranted and detrimental to bilat-eral relations.
“A superpower should neither experience discomfort nor view a threat from Pakistan’s missile pro-gramme,” she said while stressing that the country’s defence programmes — both nuclear and missile — were solely for the country’s security interests.
The spokesperson’s remarks echo PM Shehbaz’s statement today where he underscored that Paki-stan’s nuclear capability was only meant for its defence.
The recently sanctioned entities included the National Development Complex (NDC) which, according to the US, was Responsible for Pakistan’s ballistic missile programme and worked to acquire items to advance the country’s long-range ballistic missile initiative.
It also sanctioned Affiliates International, Akhtar and Sons Private Limited, and Rockside Enterprise for working to supply equipment and missile‐applicable items to the ballistic missile programme, including its long-range missile programme.
This is not the first time Washington has gone after Islamabad’s strategic capabilities as in October 2023, it had imposed sanctions on three Chinese companies for supplying missile-applicable items to Pakistan.
Furthermore, PM Shehbaz condemned the tragic loss of 17 security personnel in a recent attack by terrorists, referred to as “khawarij.”
The premier praised the security forces for their resilience, saying that they eliminated eight terrorists during the operation. He highlighted that Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir personally visited the troops to boost their morale, demonstrating the state’s unwavering support for its defenders.
He further reaffirmed his government’s commitment to eradicating terrorism, declaring: “We will not rest until the head of terrorism is crushed”.
He noted that recent incidents of terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan have raised con-cerns, especially the tragic sectarian violence in KP, which he described as “deeply distressing”.
He pointed out that while the Kurram district — which has been declared “disaster hit” owing to the crisis stemming from tribal clashes resulting in over 200 deaths since July — was engulfed in blood-shed, other political groups were preoccupied with staging protests in Islamabad.
The prime minister emphasised that the government was actively collaborating with provincial admin-istrations to combat terrorism.
“All available resources are being utilised to counter-terrorism comprehensively,” he said while assur-ing that the government stood firmly with the security forces in this battle.
