the nuclear situation in pakistan. historical background 1947 british colonial india is divided into...
TRANSCRIPT
The Nuclear Situation in Pakistan
Historical Background
1947 British colonial India is divided into two independent states
Wars between India and Pakistan
1947-48 first war over Kashmir 1965 second Kashmir war 1999 fighting occurs in Kashmir region
The Separation of East and West Pakistan
1971 India supports East Pakistan's separation from the Pakistani state militarily
This is a humitiliating defeat for Pakistan which starts to develop a nuclear weapons program
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1956 Atomic Energy Research Council 1965 first nuclear reactor built with US aid 1968 India and Pakistan refuse to sign the Non-
Proliferation Treaty 1972 decision to start a nuclear weapons
program
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1974 First Indian „peaceful“ nuclear explosion leads to intensifying of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1974 nuclear scientist Abdul Qadir Khan offers his services to the Pakistani government
Khan had studied in Europe, in West Berlin, Holland and Belgium
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
He had worked at Physical Dynamic Research Laboratory, a company associated with the Urenco uranium enrichment consortium, before he was transferred away for asking „suspicous questions“
1976 Khan receives control over Pakistani uranium enrichment programs
1978 Pakistan enriches uranium for the first time at an enrichment facility made according to Khan's plans
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1979 Pakistan is sanctioned after the US intelligence learns about the Pakistani enrichment facility
However, after the Soviet Union attacks Afghanistan, Pakistan becomes the most important US ally in the region and the US government turns a blind eye on the nuclear weapons program
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1980 Pakistan begins its missile program which is supported by China
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
Mid 1980s-1990 Pakistan is able to produce enough uranium for a nuclear weapon and produces nuclear warheads
1994 Prime minister Nawaz Sharif reveals that Pakistan has a nuclear bomb
The development of the Pakistani nuclear weapons program
1998 Pakistan tests the Ghauri-I missile reaching 1,500 km
1998 Both India and Pakistan make nuclear tests which lead to US sanctions (lifted in 2001)
1999 Pakistan makes further missile tests
The Proliferation Scandal
2003 It is revealed that Abdul Qadir Khan was responsible for building a proliferation network and selling nuclear technology to countries such as North Korea, Iran and Libya
Khan is pardoned by the Pakistani government but stays until today under house arrest
Pakistani Nuclear Weapons Capability
Delivery Vehicles: 1. Modified F-16 fighters as well as Mirage III
and Mirage V aircraft
Pakistani Nuclear Weapons Capability
Delivery Vehicles: 2. Short-range Haft-II missiles and long-range
surface-to-surface Ghauri missiles
Sources
Ahmed, Samina: Pakistan´s Nuclear Weapons Program: Moving Forward or Tactical Retreat? (Kroc Institute Occasional Papers #18), 2000
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: A. Q. Khan Nuclear Chronology, Issue Brief: Non Proliferation Vol. VIII, No. 8, 2005
Kerr, Paul; Nikitin, Mary Beth (eds.): Pakistan`s Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation and Security Issues (CRS Report for Congress), 2008
Mahrwald, Susanne: Die Entwicklung der Atomwaffen- und Raketenprogramme in Indien und Pakistan, 2007 (http://www.weltpolitik.net/print/3346.html, accessed on 8 May 2008)