US drone attacks threat to Pak’s nuclear weapons: Expert

LAHORE - A Pakistani nuclear expert has expressed concerns that US drone attacks could prove harmful for the country’s nuclear programme and its nuclear installations placed at undisclosed locations.

The Ali Institute of Education Director, Dr. A.H. Nayyar said this during a seminar titled “What is so unclear about nuclear; a brief history of Pakistan’s nuclear programme”, which was organised by the institute in Lahore on Thursday.

When asked if the CIA could take away Pakistan’s nuclear weapons and whether the country’s nuclear weapons were safe against theft and proliferation, Dr. Nayyar said that they were completely safe, as the officials had taken strict measures to avoid any mishap.

“But, due to US drone attacks, Pakistani nuclear weapons could be targeted if these weapons were kept in the same areas of the country where US forces were chasing terrorists and bombing their hideouts,” The Daily Times quoted Dr. Nayyar, as saying.

The nuclear expert further said that Pakistan held around 125 nuclear weapons, which were not placed together at any single location in the country, and no other country including the US could trace or take away the weapons. (ANI)