Pakistan

Youm-e-Takbeer, and a revelation

Express May 28, 2010

ISLAMABAD: As the nation marks Youm-e-Takbeer to commemorate the conduction of nuclear tests, PML-N Chief Mian Nawaz Sharif revealed Friday that the then US president had offered him a five billion dollar package for Pakistan to reverse the decision.

Addressing his party workers in Lahore on the occasion, Sharif said Pakistan faced immense pressure from world community before and after the tests.

He added that his government withstood the pressure and he gave a go-ahead to the nuclear tests while sitting in Kazakhstan.

The day is to be celebrated across the country with a solemn pledge to make Pakistan a stronger country, militarily and economically.

Pakistan had conducted nuclear tests at Chaghi, Balochistan in response to five nuclear explosions conducted by India, to become the seventh country in the world to possess nuclear weapons.

To mark the day, various political parties and social organizations have chalked out a number of comprehensive programmes in different parts of the country.

Click the video tab above to view the original test.

COMMENTS (16)

Mubasher | 14 years ago | Reply Pakistan is a poor country but we still managed to enable ourselves to defend through having nuclear strength. Its my identity that I am a national of a nuclear Pakistan.

Umayr Masud | 14 years ago | Reply We are a nuclear power, i have a few questions, Since we have the expertise are we teaching nuclear/atomic/etc. education in our Universities ? do we have labs (india has them dehli uni made a mess of some nuclear material) If we are such a capable nuclear power , why haven't we got some serious nuclear research going on in any of the public institutes? I haven't heard of any nuclear research going on in the field of medical. We have nuclear bomb, but have we educated our people about what to do in case an actual nuclear war breaks out ? Do we have ANY capabilities to handle a nuclear strike? (Medical etc.) If a fire breaks out in a building we cant stop the fire with our current capability shouldn't we have better disaster management if we are such a Great nuclear capable nation/Power. ? Do we have any nuclear shelters? Why are we not educating our younger generation in the field, why is it only a group of selected few who are taught how to operate stuff rather than make some humane use of the technology. Isn't it a shame that Abdus Salam is not a hero , while a guy who admits to have stolen data is. And if we do have to acknowledge , shouldn't we acknowledge the whole team of scientists instead. Now that we have nuclear capability and enough warheads, can we please put the recurring budget to good use , such as education, health. People of this nation really need to set their priorities right. Having a nuclear bomb might have saved us from an imminent attack, but in the long run we'd perish if we do not fix our ways.

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Bangash | 14 years ago | Reply In retrospect, a Pyrrhic victory.

reader one | 14 years ago | Reply It is absolutely wrong to say that Pakistan is the 7th Nuclear power in the world. There are countries where our scientists learned and brought the expertise need for nuclear bombs. Can those countries not make nuclear bombs? I bet they can! so the notion is fasle that we are 7th Nuclear state on world map. Further more it was not on 28 May 1998 that we became nuclear. We had been nuclear since early 80s. Remember Zia's cricket diplomacy? He went to India to tell them that we had the nukes just as they had it. As always our foolishness and irrational decisions lead our miserable destiny. We fell for the Indian prank in 1998 and detonated nuclear bombs calling world wide condemnation and sanctions. We all know what happened since then? The Indians had a far better economy than ours and they managed to pull it off while we couldn't. They bluffed and we went for it. USD accounts of rich businessmen and goverment coronies were checked out and the remaining innocent public faced the dollar freeze.

Tanzeel | 14 years ago | Reply A nuclear country unable provide basic security to its own people.

faraz | 14 years ago | Reply I salute Dr Munir A Khan, the real father of our atomic bomb.

Fahd | 14 years ago | Reply Nawaz Sharif does best what all politicians in Pakistan do, lie that is. He had accepted everything the Americans had offered him and had back down, hadn't it been to the system of the Pakistan Army that knew the meaning of balancing the equation of strategic power in the region. Nawaz Sharif knew only so much as balancing his bank accounts. It was the Army that threw the aid into the gutter and went ahead with exploding the device. the main man behind the whole thing was sammar mubarak mund.

Syed A. Mateen | 14 years ago | Reply On each Youm-e-Takbeer people remember that Pakistan has become a nuclear state, but could not generate enough power to provide uninterrupted electricity in the country. I do not think that in future Pakistan will ever be able to use the atom bomb against any country. The question arises: Pakistan has tested atom bomb which was the need of the hour when India tested its nuclear bomb, but when people will have uninterrepted electricity in the country? This is million dollars question.

Mahvesh | 14 years ago | Reply All you praisers of having nuclear weapons, first go and read up on the history of Pakistan's nuclear program - AQ Khan didn't deliver you the bomb all on his own. Look up the works of Dr. Munir Khan, Dr. Usmani and Dr. Bashiruddin Mahmood among others. Know your heroes before you start throwing out the salutes. If we really knew how to treat heroes, you all would know the names of these people instead of one.

Farigh | 14 years ago | Reply We are a thankless nation, see what we do with our heroes like A Q Khan.

Muhammad Bilal Iftikhar Khan | 14 years ago | Reply Pakistan is Awfully Luckey.

Nadeem Khan | 14 years ago | Reply We salute DR. AQ Khan, You are our real hero. God Bless You

Shafqat | 14 years ago | Reply Great people are those who work only for their country. Dr A Q Khan is a great Pakistani who made the Pakistan a unbeatable power.And now we should install new projects for generating electricity from nuclear and get help from scientists under supervision of highly experienced nuclear scientists Like A Q Khan

Fasih Ali Khan | 14 years ago | Reply Youm-e-Takbeer Mubarak to the whole Pakistani Nation and the Muslim Ummah. May Allah Kareem save us from the Sh'r of Non Believers and grant us the Strength to prepare for our defence. Ameen.

M Sharjeel | 14 years ago | Reply That time was very tough and Pakistan had to shown its strengthen so India would not able show its aggression. One of the most memorable day for me as i born on 28th May.

Jazib | 14 years ago | Reply Dr. A Q Khan who helped us out to reach that stage that we are celeberating was treated in a way that no one in Pakistan would like to do such great things. The way we treat our heroes and the way we add laurels to the crowns of the thieves in our country will rather take us back to stone age. God Forbid.

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