US should offer N-deal to Pakistan, Senate panel told

[Neo]

US should offer N-deal to Pakistan, Senate panel told​

WASHINGTON, June 13: The United States should offer Pakistan a nuclear deal to make Islamabad accept the obligations that come with being a state with atomic weapons, a US Senate panel was told.

Stephen Cohen, an expert of South Asian affairs at Washing-ton’s Brookings Institution, said the nuclear deal the United States had offered to India should have been based on criteria instead of being country-specific.

“A similar deal could have been offered to states like Pakistan and Israel,” he told a Senate Homeland Security subcommittee, “countries that have not signed the non-proliferation treaty but have nuclear weapons.”

Soon after the United States announced its intention to offer a nuclear deal to India in July 2005, Pakistan urged Washington not to make it India-specific and allow other countries to benefit from this arrangement as well.

But the Bush administration made it obvious that it was making only a one-time exception for India and had no intention of offering a similar deal to Pakistan.

Mr Cohen, however, said that the United States could offer a similar deal to Pakistan, patterning it on the EU offer to Turkey which requires Turkey to meet certain criteria for joining the European community.

“In the case of Pakistan you can establish criteria, such as a safe and secure nuclear programme, commitment to nuclear non-proliferation and arms control,” he said. “These are same as the NPT obligations.”

If Pakistan accepts these obligations, “it would be certainly eligible” for a nuclear deal with the United States.

Mr Cohen noted that China was already helping Pakistan with its nuclear programme but such assistance did not “quite legitimise” the Pakistani programme.

As part of the process of legitimisation, Pakistan will have to accept the obligations of the NPT signatories and will have to share all of its knowledge about past proliferation activities.

Lisa Curtis, a South Asia expert at Washington’s Heritage Foundation, recalled that when the US cut off assistance to Pakistan in the early 1990s, there was debate within the Pakistani security establishment over how to protect Pakistani security interests without backing from the US.

“Subsequently Pakistan began engaging in risky activities such as proliferating nuclear technology and know-how to North Korea in exchange for missiles it deemed necessary to meet the threat from India,” she said while urging Washington to stay engaged with Islamabad.

Michael Krepon, a co-founder of the Henry L. Stimson Centre, told the committee that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons were the nation’s most closely guarded man-made objects, its ‘crown jewels.’ “I do not place much credence in scenarios that project a takeover of the Pakistani government or army leadership by extremists.”

He noted that there was “very great suspicion” in Pakistan about US intentions.

US should offer N-deal to Pakistan, Senate panel told -DAWN - Top Stories; June 14, 2008

 

[Neo]

Finally some positive news from the States.

Quite interesting that Stephen Cohen, a jew, is advocating for nuclear parity!

Stephen Cohen, an expert of South Asian affairs at Washing-ton’s Brookings Institution, said the nuclear deal the United States had offered to India should have been based on criteria instead of being country-specific.

“A similar deal could have been offered to states like Pakistan and Israel,” he told a Senate Homeland Security subcommittee, “countries that have not signed the non-proliferation treaty but have nuclear weapons.”

 

[Neo]

Lisa Curtis, a South Asia expert at Washington’s Heritage Foundation, recalled that when the US cut off assistance to Pakistan in the early 1990s, there was debate within the Pakistani security establishment over how to protect Pakistani security interests without backing from the US.

“Subsequently Pakistan began engaging in risky activities such as proliferating nuclear technology and know-how to North Korea in exchange for missiles it deemed necessary to meet the threat from India,” she said while urging Washington to stay engaged with Islamabad.

In other words, US' sanctions in the first place forced Pakistani Think Tank to look for alternatives which resulted in aledged nuclear proliferation.

 

[dabong1]

Hopefully no deal will take place........we cant trust them!

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

In other words, US' sanctions in the first place forced Pakistani Think Tank to look for alternatives which resulted in aledged nuclear proliferation.

Blain made an excellent argument I thought.

Pakistan did what it had to do to survive - there should be no shame over that. We should be proud of the fact that one way or the other, we managed to achieve that which we thought would guarantee our security.

I personally think Cohen's suggestion is a good one.

Limits and more openness on Pakistan's nuclear program, in return for technology that we would find extremely helpful in addressing our growing energy needs and a much broader strategic and economic partnership with the US (access to markets etc.).

 

[kidwaibhai]

i think the opinion among US scholars is changing for the most part about pakistan. i think that they know see the problems that were created after they completely disengaged from us. i also believe that the knew elections have also showed the people that not all pakistanis are crazy extremists we are just like them and want to live in peace and prosper

 

[IceCold]

We shouldnt get carried away by such offerings. Remember US does not see pakistan's nuclear programe with good intentions in its mind. The fear that has also been expressed in Musharraf's book "in the line of fire". Information against technology is a risky business. Reason is for now US has no information about pakistan's nuclear programe and this is what haunts them the most, they want that information so bad that they have now come up with what i should call a trap.
China is already helping us in this regard and only if we could focus are efforts and energy on the real problems rather then restoring the corrupt judiciary, we can solve the energy crisis. We dont need the americans for that.