India rejects Pakistan's offer for nuclear test ban treaty
NEW DELHI, Sep 24, 2016, DHNS
India has rejected Pakistan’s proposal for a bilateral nuclear test ban treaty. The offer was made by Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during his recent speech at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“We believe that the issues pertaining to nuclear disarmament do not have regional solutions,” spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs Vikas Swarup said, indicating that
New Delhi was in no mood to accept the offer from Islamabad. Sharif told the UN General Assembly on Wednesday that Pakistan was ready for talks with India to “agree on a bilateral nuclear test ban treaty”. His offer came at a time when New Delhi’s troubled relations with Islamabad worsened after the recent terror attack on the Indian Army camp at Uri in north Kashmir.
Four Pakistani suicide attackers had sneaked into India from across the Line of Control and carried out the attack, which resulted in the death of 18 soldiers of the Indian Army.
Sharif said while Pakistan was committed to establishing strategic stability in the region, it could not ignore India’s “unprecedented arms build-up” and would take whatever measures were necessary to maintain “credible deterrence”.
Sources told DH in New Delhi that India already had in place a unilateral moratorium on test of nuclear weapons and was not keen to hold discussion with Pakistan for a bilateral treaty. New Delhi, however, argued that issues pertaining to nuclear disarmament were global in nature. “Our position on these issues and our engagements with global forums dealing with these issues were a matter of record,” said Swarup.
The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was adopted by the UN General on Assembly September 10, 1996 which is signed and ratified by 166 nations so far. The US and China are among the 17 nations, which have signed the treaty, but not ratified it.
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