Pakistan summons US ambassador over Biden's nuclear remarks

Pakistan has summoned the American ambassador to Islamabad for an official demarche on US President Joe Biden’s remarks on the country’s nuclear weapons.

In a speech on Thursday, Biden questioned the safety of Pakistan's nuclear program. He said Pakistan is "maybe one of the most dangerous nations in the world" as it has "nuclear weapons without any cohesion," according to a transcript of the speech released by the White House.

Biden’s apparently off-the-cuff remark was made in the context of the changing geopolitical situation globally. The US president claimed the world was changing rapidly and countries were rethinking their alliances. “And the truth of the matter is — I genuinely believe this — that the world is looking to us. Not a joke. Even our enemies are looking to us to figure out how we figure this out, what we do.”

Biden went on to boast that the US has the capacity to lead the world.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Biden’s comments.

“Pakistan is a responsible nuclear state and we are proud that our nuclear assets have the best safeguards as per IAEA requirements,” Sharif tweeted, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency. “We take these safety measures with the utmost seriousness. Let no one have any doubts.”

Let me reiterate unequivocally: Pakistan is a responsible nuclear state and we are proud that our nuclear assets have the best safeguards as per IAEA requirements. We take these safety measures with the utmost seriousness. Let no one have any doubts.

— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) October 15, 2022

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said he was amazed by Biden’s strange comments.

"As far as the question of the safety and security of Pakistan's nuclear assets are concerned, we meet all – each and every – international standard in accordance with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)," he said at a press conference on Saturday.

“If there is any question as to nuclear safety, then they should be directed to our neighbor India, who very recently accidentally fired a missile into Pakistani territory,” Bhutto-Zardari added, according to the website of the English language newspaper DAWN.

“This is not only irresponsible and unsafe but raises genuine and serious concerns about the safety of nuclear-capable countries,” he pointed out.

“I am surprised by the remarks of President Biden […] I believe this is exactly the sort of misunderstanding that is created when there is a lack of engagement.”

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned Biden’s remarks on Pakistan’s nuclear program.

“I have 2 questions on this: 1. On what info has [the US president) reached this unwarranted conclusion on our nuclear capability when, having been PM, I know we have one of the most secure nuclear command & control systems?” Khan asked. 

“2. Unlike the US which has been involved in wars across the world, when has Pakistan shown aggression, especially post-nuclearisation?” he added.

Another former Pakistani minister, Dr. Shireen Mazari also denounced Biden’s remarks.

“So [the US president] you said something about national cohesion? Seriously the US needs to do some serious introspection before targeting other countries. An unstable nuclear superpower with no national cohesion is a grave threat to the rest of the world,” she tweeted.

Washington's relations with Pakistan have soured since last year when the US ended a two-decade war in Afghanistan, and then allegedly toppled the government of Prime Minister Khan.

Pakistan this week abstained from a United Nationals General Assembly vote to condemn Russia's incorporation of parts of Ukraine following referendums there, despite a major US diplomatic push to seek clearer condemnation of Moscow.

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