Pak nuclear tests restored regional balance: AJK president

ISLAMABAD: President Azad Kashmir Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry has said that the nuclear tests conducted by Pakistan on May 28, 1998, restored the strategic balance in the region and made Pakistan’s defence impregnable.

In a special message on Youm-e Takbeer, he commended the exceptional role played by then Prime Minister Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in initiating the nuclear programme. Barrister Chaudhry also highlighted Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto’s significant role in the development and advancement of missile technology.

“These initiatives have made Pakistan’s defence invincible,” the president said, adding that no enemy can even dare to cast an evil eye on the country.

The president, while emphasising the early and amicable settlement of the Kashmir dispute, said, “Kashmir, a nuclear flashpoint between India and Pakistan, has the potential to trigger a nuclear war.”

Any incident, regardless of its size, can potentially escalate into a larger conflict between India and Pakistan that can jeopardise the peace of the whole world,” Barrister Chaudhry added.

“The key to peace in South Asia lies in a just and honourable settlement of the Kashmir issue,” he remarked.

He said that it was high time the international community played its due role in resolving the long-standing Kashmir issue in line with the UNSC resolutions.

Terming Kashmiris as the major stakeholders in the dispute, the president stressed the need for associating Kashmiri leadership in the dialogue process to find a lasting solution to the Kashmir issue.