An open letter to DG SPD

[Dawood Ibrahim]

One thing is clear: a nuclear Pakistan cannot afford to be a pariah state in the comity of nations

By:
Rizwan Asghar


11-Jan-17

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Dear Sir, Pakistan is a nuclear state, with a stockpile of more than 130 nuclear weapons. There is no way these 130 weapons can be used without blowing up the whole planet. With four operating plutonium production reactors, Pakistan’s capacity to produce fissile material for weapons continues to grow. When would it stop? No one seems to know the answer. Do you?

I am sure you are aware of the fact that Pakistan has enough weapons to ensure that war in South Asia is no longer an option. We do not need a shift from a strategy of ‘minimum credible deterrence’ to ‘full spectrum deterrence’. So, maybe, you should finally, solve this puzzle: how many nuclear weapons are enough? Because it seems, it is high time we stopped producing more nuclear material for weapons. Nuclear weapons are meant to deter a nuclear war, not arm the country to fight one.

Our growing nuclear arsenal, along with the induction of tactical nuclear weapons, is not the most sensible strategy.

There is no gainsaying the fact that India has one of the world’s fastest growing nuclear arsenals. But the international community is not ready to accept the logic that the future trajectory of our nuclear programme should depend on how much Indian nuclear arsenal grows. Pakistan’s economy is only one-seventh of India’s and what certainly makes more sense is competing with India in the economic realm.

Our current nuclear approach continues to send alarms to the international community. Part of the reason why the international media is also swarming with apprehensions about our nuclear capability has to do with your organisation’s complete failure on the diplomatic front. It is an unfortunate fact that our government has, thus far, remained unable to gain international support against India’s involvement in Balochistan and our tribal areas. And what explains this failure to appraise the world of our legitimate security concerns is the presence of the weak and uncharismatic leaders that dominate Pakistani politics at the moment.

Then there is the issue that our nuclear establishment has also made no bones about impressing upon the international community the need to understand the threats emanating from India’s conventional military strength. The course of events over the past one year shows that our political government and military leaders have not been quite successful in fighting our case on the diplomatic front.

It is highly unfortunate that Pakistani scholars are so ill-informed on issues of national security that in different international conferences and seminars they rely only on hackneyed phrases and diplomatic jargon to fight Pakistan’s case. Our nuclear establishment does not make any serious effort to select competent people for this purpose, relying on individuals who parrot the official position of the Pakistani government without actually thinking about what it means.

The one thing our nuclear security managers should have understood by now is that the only way for Pakistan to be accepted as a normal nuclear state is to win over diplomatic support in favour of our nuclear stance. One way to gain the support of the international community is by letting the Conference on Disarmament (CD) start negotiations on the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT).

Pakistan’s refusal to allow even the start of formal talks on the FMCT is an unsustainable position. What is worse is that, taking advantage of our collective failure to muster enough support, some members of the CD only blame Pakistan’s obduracy for the deadlock of the CD.

More alarmingly, a myriad of vested interests and misguided writers in both Pakistan and India are influencing the public mind. And the very few people who are trying to make people aware of this rush towards nuclear insanity are being branded ‘traitors’ or ‘American agents’. This also explains why about 1.5 billion people of South Asia are being held hostage to the myopic vision of the nuclear establishments of both countries.

Pakistan’s Strategic Plans Division (SPD) will have to stop relying on such dogmatic writers and, instead, engage qualified foreign experts who can reconcile our broader national security approach with certain reasonable demands from the international community. A decent beginning can be made if Pakistan allows the start of talks on the FMCT. The academics in our country should help bring down the emotional rhetoric on this issue. Pakistan cannot afford to appear as a country violating the UN resolution and blocking the CD from implementing its agreed agenda.

As director general of the SPD, you should play a role in bringing fundamental changes to Pakistan’s emerging nuclear posture and ensure that our country earns a respectable place in the global nuclear order. One thing is clear: a nuclear Pakistan cannot afford to be a pariah state in the comity of nations.

I hope you appreciate my concerns.


http://dailytimes.com.pk/opinion/11-Jan-17/an-open-letter-to-dg-spd

 

[Dawood Ibrahim]

Well its a valid point will we use all these weapons or jus stored it like money in banks

 

[Djinn]

I don't think that Mr.Author knows the the obscure nature of the subject he has picked to share his utopian views, throughout this write up he keeps on bringing up the International community scare to have Pakistan subordinate it's prime security interests to please a few hypocrite states, which so far have failed to acknowledge that this proposed treaty stands to target Pakistan alone. All the P-5 states had a head start and there's no telling to which extent they have stockpiled the fissile materials, this throws India, Israeel and Pakistan under the spot light, and while the special treatment that has always been meted out to Israeel is no secret, the highly controversial NSG waiver for India clears the dust over this treaty's and so called International community's discriminatory posture towards Pakistan.

 

[Tiger Awan]

There is no way we can pacify the world. There are bigger problems in World eg

the Japanese possess 44 tons of plutonium. Three-quarters of this fissile material is stored in other countries, but Japan has kept 10 tons on its own soil. Those 10 tons are enough to build about 1,500 nuclear weapons

compare this to a relatively modest 24-48 kg of Plutonium we produce (as per US intel reports)


Oh and he should have written this letter to NCA not SPD, SPD is the secretariat of NCA. All decisions are taken by NCA. SPD enforce them

 

[CriticalThought]

Pointwise debunking:

One thing is clear: a nuclear Pakistan cannot afford to be a pariah state in the comity of nations

By:
Rizwan Asghar


11-Jan-17

711
711

• 
  13
  
  Shares
• 13

Dear Sir, Pakistan is a nuclear state, with a stockpile of more than 130 nuclear weapons. There is no way these 130 weapons can be used without blowing up the whole planet. With four operating plutonium production reactors, Pakistan’s capacity to produce fissile material for weapons continues to grow. When would it stop? No one seems to know the answer. Do you?

Why are you asking that question?

I am sure you are aware of the fact that Pakistan has enough weapons to ensure that war in South Asia is no longer an option. We do not need a shift from a strategy of ‘minimum credible deterrence’ to ‘full spectrum deterrence’. So, maybe, you should finally, solve this puzzle: how many nuclear weapons are enough? Because it seems, it is high time we stopped producing more nuclear material for weapons. Nuclear weapons are meant to deter a nuclear war, not arm the country to fight one.

Define 'enough weapons'. Can you give us a definition of when enough is enough? Keep in mind the following points:

1. India continues to grow its nuclear arsenal and this fact is conveniently overlooked by the 'comity of nations'.
2. India continues to invest in anti-ballistic missile systems which means we must be ready for a saturation nuclear attack.
3. India continues to invest in a second-strike capability which means we must increase our stockpile to ensure not just one successful saturation attack from land, but two successful saturation attacks from land and sea.

Based on all of this, how much is enough?

Our growing nuclear arsenal, along with the induction of tactical nuclear weapons, is not the most sensible strategy.

There is no gainsaying the fact that India has one of the world’s fastest growing nuclear arsenals. But the international community is not ready to accept the logic that the future trajectory of our nuclear programme should depend on how much Indian nuclear arsenal grows. Pakistan’s economy is only one-seventh of India’s and what certainly makes more sense is competing with India in the economic realm.

So, India can continue to grow its nuclear arsenal, and we should not only stop increasing our arsenal, but should divert our energies to economic growth. Let us say we reach a point where we are able to overtake an extremely belligerent, bellicose, nationalistic, and anti-Pakistan India in the economic race. In such a condition India will impose a nuclear war on us to set us back. Even today, India is out on a limb to ridicule us, to incite unrest within our borders, and to try and isolate us. These MUST be considered acts of war. You want us to stop preparing for war? You are a traitor. Period.

Our current nuclear approach continues to send alarms to the international community. Part of the reason why the international media is also swarming with apprehensions about our nuclear capability has to do with your organisation’s complete failure on the diplomatic front. It is an unfortunate fact that our government has, thus far, remained unable to gain international support against India’s involvement in Balochistan and our tribal areas. And what explains this failure to appraise the world of our legitimate security concerns is the presence of the weak and uncharismatic leaders that dominate Pakistani politics at the moment.

I agree. But what also doesn't help is pseudo-intellectuals like yourself who make very obvious attempts to become mouth-pieces of anti-Pakistan forces around the world, and try to sugarcoat their propaganda with a cunningly sympathetic understanding of some of our problems. You have pointed out a part of the overall problem, but the fact of the matter is, we already know the problems we face. Tell us something we don't know.

Then there is the issue that our nuclear establishment has also made no bones about impressing upon the international community the need to understand the threats emanating from India’s conventional military strength. The course of events over the past one year shows that our political government and military leaders have not been quite successful in fighting our case on the diplomatic front.

You are conveniently ignoring the outright hatred and animosity borne by your 'international comity' against us. Hate and enmity isn't resolved through talks. It is countered by showing a powerful fist that promises copious nosebleed.

It is highly unfortunate that Pakistani scholars are so ill-informed on issues of national security that in different international conferences and seminars they rely only on hackneyed phrases and diplomatic jargon to fight Pakistan’s case. Our nuclear establishment does not make any serious effort to select competent people for this purpose, relying on individuals who parrot the official position of the Pakistani government without actually thinking about what it means.

Well, they can't be people like you, I'm sure of that much. By the way, care to give concrete examples of these 'ill-informed Pakistani scholars' the 'hackneyed phrases and diplomatic jargon' they employ and the 'international conferences and seminars' they speak in? When someone has an agenda, he tries to brush everything with a broad stroke. This is called pseudo-intellectualism. Stop doing this.

The one thing our nuclear security managers should have understood by now is that the only way for Pakistan to be accepted as a normal nuclear state is to win over diplomatic support in favour of our nuclear stance. One way to gain the support of the international community is by letting the Conference on Disarmament (CD) start negotiations on the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT).

Pakistan’s refusal to allow even the start of formal talks on the FMCT is an unsustainable position. What is worse is that, taking advantage of our collective failure to muster enough support, some members of the CD only blame Pakistan’s obduracy for the deadlock of the CD.

So, after much verbiage, you finally come to the point that your masters want you to promote. Tell them to get lost.

More alarmingly, a myriad of vested interests and misguided writers in both Pakistan and India are influencing the public mind. And the very few people who are trying to make people aware of this rush towards nuclear insanity are being branded ‘traitors’ or ‘American agents’. This also explains why about 1.5 billion people of South Asia are being held hostage to the myopic vision of the nuclear establishments of both countries.

Pakistan’s Strategic Plans Division (SPD) will have to stop relying on such dogmatic writers and, instead, engage qualified foreign experts who can reconcile our broader national security approach with certain reasonable demands from the international community. A decent beginning can be made if Pakistan allows the start of talks on the FMCT. The academics in our country should help bring down the emotional rhetoric on this issue. Pakistan cannot afford to appear as a country violating the UN resolution and blocking the CD from implementing its agreed agenda.

As director general of the SPD, you should play a role in bringing fundamental changes to Pakistan’s emerging nuclear posture and ensure that our country earns a respectable place in the global nuclear order. One thing is clear: a nuclear Pakistan cannot afford to be a pariah state in the comity of nations.

I hope you appreciate my concerns.

Yes, basically you want us to appoint the wolves to safeguard the ewes. Not happening under the current shepherds. Alhamdulillah. May Allah give our leaders the Guidance and Steadfastness to effectively counter the efforts of our enemies on all fronts. Aaameen.

 

[I S I]

Hope for the best, Prepare for the worst.

We're preparing for the worst or say MAD. BaburIII SLCM is a proof of that.

 

[touqeer haq]

Where is the proof that our nuclear stock pile is growing. It's just western media who says we got 100-130 weapons and growing.. no one even know that what's going inside the nuclear power plants. May b we are using nuclear material for peaceful purposes.
Just chill man, SPD knows better what's the country's requirement, not a Moombatti mafia..