WASHINGTON - Pakistan has ruled out any change in its ‘dynamic’ policy of increasing nuclear weapons, as it dismissed the US’ request in this regard.
A day after Secretary of State John Kerry asked Pakistan to review its policy of increasing its nuclear weapons, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz conceded that the nuclear issue was one of the areas of differences between the US and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the United States and Pakistan have called for a peaceful settlement of the India-Pakistan dispute over Kashmir, and urged all parties in the region to act with “maximum restraint” for the reduction of tensions.
“The US and Pakistan emphasised the importance of meaningful dialogue in support of peaceful resolution of outstanding issues, including Kashmir,” a US-Pakistan joint statement on the conclusion of their sixth Strategic Dialogue said.
Sartaj Aziz led the Pakistan delegation while Secretary of State John Kerry headed the US team to the dialogue at which the two sides expressed the conviction that “robust, long-term bilateral relationship remains critical to regional and international security and prosperity.”
“Both sides noted the importance of US-Pak defence cooperation, which supports shared strategic objectives relating to counterterrorism and regional stability,” according to the joint statement. “Both the United States and Pakistani delegations expressed their desire for the US-Pakistan bilateral security relationship to continue on a mutually beneficial and sustainable trajectory.”
The joint statement said, “The delegations underscored that all parties in the region should continuously act with maximum restraint and work collaboratively toward reducing tensions.
“Noting the steps taken by Pakistan to date, including the detention of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) leader Maulana Masood Azhar, the US appreciated Prime Minister (Nawaz) Sharif’s stated commitment to take prompt and decisive action on this investigation and to bring the perpetrators of the January 2, 2016 attack on the Pathankot airbase to justice”.
Observers noted that India was not mentioned in any context in the joint statement in which the US acknowledged Pakistan’s ongoing efforts to harmonise its strategic trade controls with those of the multilateral export control regimes.
The US also lauded Pakistan’s “proactive engagement” with the international community, including through its hosting of IAEA training activities at its Nuclear Security Centre of Excellence and its active participation in the Nuclear Security Summits, it said.
The US looked forward to Sharif’s participation in the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit and appreciated Pakistan’s commitment, in principle, to ratify the 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material.
According to the joint statement, Pakistan affirmed that it remains committed to pursuing measures aimed at building confidence and lessening the risk of armed conflict.
Both sides recognised the shared interest in strategic stability in South Asia and in pursuing increased transparency. The two sides look forward to the upcoming Security, Strategic Stability, and Nonproliferation (SSS&NP) working group meeting in May 2016, it said.
During the strategic dialogue, both countries reaffirmed their commitment to countering terrorism including by targeting all terrorists without discrimination.
“The two countries agreed on the need for effective action against all violent extremists, specifically underscoring that no country’s territory should be used to destabilise other countries,” the joint statement said. “The United States expressed appreciation for the sacrifices of Pakistan’s security personnel and civilians in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism. Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to countering terrorism including by targeting all terrorists without discrimination.”
Aziz affirmed Pakistan’s resolve to take effective action against UN-designated terrorist individuals and entities, including Al-Qaeda, Haqqani Network and Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and its affiliates, as per its international commitments and obligations under United Nations Security Council resolutions and the Financial Action Task Force.
“The United States reiterated its continuing support for the armed forces of Pakistan in their ongoing counterinsurgency operations in FATA and disruption of militant networks,” the statement said.
“The Pakistani delegation expressed its appreciation for US support in bolstering Pakistan’s counterterrorism and counterinsurgency capacity. Both sides underscored the importance of bilateral defence cooperation as serving their mutual interest and noted their willingness to explore new avenues to refine defence collaboration.”
It said, “Secretary Kerry welcomed Pakistan’s commitment to facilitating an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process. The two sides underscored the imperative of quickly catalysing direct peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban to end the bloodshed and preserve Afghanistan’s unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
During an interaction at the Council on Foreign Relations, Sartaj Aziz ruled out any change in Pakistan’s nuclear policy. “In terms of the safety and security of nuclear weapons command and control system, we have made outstanding progress. Globally, all the international agencies and the US have acknowledged that Pakistan has developed a very good system for the safety for export control, and command and control system.”
“But the [American] concern remains. Our nuclear capacity is a deterrent against Indian capacity. Deterrent is not a static concept. It is a dynamic concept. If your adversary goes on expanding its capacity, then you have to respond. It is not something that you can take something for granted,” he said.
“We keep insisting in our relationship that India is the independent variable in this. We are the dependent variable. So if India were to restrain and US would not increase its strategic and conventional imbalance between the two countries, then our task would become easier.” Pakistan can’t even afford this strategic and conventional imbalance with India, he said.
Aziz said menace of terrorism is not biggest threat to Pakistan’s security but India’s increasing strategic and conventional imbalance in the South Asian region is real challenge.
Responding to a question, Aziz said Islamabad has considerable influence over the Taliban because its leaders live in the country. “We have some influence over them because their leadership is in Pakistan and they get some medical facilities. Their families are here,” he said. “We can use those levers to pressurise them to say, ‘Come to the table’. But we can’t negotiate on behalf of the Afghan government because we cannot offer them what the Afghan government can offer them.”
He added Islamabad pressured Afghan Taliban leaders to participate in the first-ever direct talks with the Afghan government on July 7, 2015. “We have to use these levers and [have] restricted their movements, restricted their access to hospitals and other facilities, and threatened them that ‘If you don’t come forward and talk, we will at least expel you’,” he said of the tough message Islamabad sent to Taliban leaders.
“We have hosted them enough for 35 years, and we can’t do it anymore because the whole world is blaming us just by their presence here,” he said.

WE ARE ‘ALLY FROM HEAVEN,  NOT FROM HELL’

Acknowledging that there was a “significant change” in its policy to act against terror groups without discrimination, Aziz said it hopes the US would now consider it an “ally from heaven” and not from hell, as described in a recent book by an ex-CIA chief.
“After my government came in 2013 there has been a significant change in our policy. We are now moving against all terrorists without any discrimination. And I hope that we would qualify to be an ally (of US) from heaven,” Aziz said.