Nuclear programme enjoys 'across the board' support of all pol parties: Chairman JCSC

General Nadeem Raza says 'unnecessary and unfounded views on the strategic programme should be avoided'

ISLAMABAD:

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (JCSC) General Nadeem Raza on Monday said that Pakistan’s nuclear programme enjoys "across the board support of all political parties" and the people of Pakistan.

General Raza’s statements were made during a keynote on the seminar "Regional Environment and Imperatives of Security" at the NUST Institute of Policy Studies (NIPS). Students, academics and distinguished experts from different parts of the country participated.

According to a press release by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Chairman JCSC - who is also the deputy chairman of the National Command Authority (NCA) - commented on the regional security environment and reiterated the significance of Pakistan’s nuclear capability as the “guarantor of deterrence and defence of the motherland.”

Read 'Nuclear arsenals maintain credible deterrence in South Asia'

General Raza said that Pakistan’s nuclear programme enjoys across board support and “the NCA, with all its political and military leadership, stands firm for the strategic programme".

He asserted that national security is indivisible and assured that under no circumstances shall Pakistan allow a compromise on its nuclear programme.

"Pakistan is a confident and responsible nuclear power. It pursues the policy of full-spectrum deterrence within the precincts of credible minimum deterrence. Our national security and safety architecture meets all national and international obligations and caters for all kinds of scenarios," the chairman added.

Chairman JCSC General Nadeem Raza concluded that as is the norm in other nuclear-capable nations, “unnecessary and unfounded views on the strategic programme should be avoided. When necessary, NCA is the right forum to issue specific responses or views."