Of course, Pakistan's matching capabilities both at sea and land have ensured peace in the region. That the matching nuclear capabilities of both Pakistan and India have so far ensured peace between them is certainly a positive development. But for how long? There is the inbuilt risk of nuclear genie bursting out of the bottle; there is no fail-safe mechanism to it. That is why Pakistan is duly disturbed over this month-long patrol of India's nuclear-equipped submarine. It is the "first actual deployment of ready-to-fire nuclear warheads in South Asia", therefore a matter of concern not only for the Indian Ocean littoral states but also for the international community - a concern heightened all the more given Indian prime minister's dream to revive India's mythical hold on the entire body of the Indian Ocean from the Strait of Malacca to Island of Socotra. His bellicose language constitutes threats to the strategic stability in South Asia and therefore raises "questions about responsible nuclear stewardship in India". Obviously, Pakistan has called for an assessment of the non-proliferation benefits resulting from the Indian membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). When India carried out its first atomic tests in 1973 at Pokhran, the code word used by the then prime minister, Indira Gandhi, was 'Smiling Buddha'. The world at large needs to see through India's image as land of peace. On the other hand, Pakistan is committed to the objective of strategic stability in South Asia, and therefore has called for "measures for nuclear and missile restraint". The international community can help that happen by weighing in with New Delhi to shun the path of aggressive nuclear posturing, as it has done in the wake of Anihant's so-called deterrence patrol.
Of course, Pakistan's matching capabilities both at sea and land have ensured peace in the region. That the matching nuclear capabilities of both Pakistan and India have so far ensured peace between them is certainly a positive development. But for how long? There is the inbuilt risk of nuclear genie bursting out of the bottle; there is no fail-safe mechanism to it. That is why Pakistan is duly disturbed over this month-long patrol of India's nuclear-equipped submarine. It is the "first actual deployment of ready-to-fire nuclear warheads in South Asia", therefore a matter of concern not only for the Indian Ocean littoral states but also for the international community - a concern heightened all the more given Indian prime minister's dream to revive India's mythical hold on the entire body of the Indian Ocean from the Strait of Malacca to Island of Socotra. His bellicose language constitutes threats to the strategic stability in South Asia and therefore raises "questions about responsible nuclear stewardship in India". Obviously, Pakistan has called for an assessment of the non-proliferation benefits resulting from the Indian membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). When India carried out its first atomic tests in 1973 at Pokhran, the code word used by the then prime minister, Indira Gandhi, was 'Smiling Buddha'. The world at large needs to see through India's image as land of peace. On the other hand, Pakistan is committed to the objective of strategic stability in South Asia, and therefore has called for "measures for nuclear and missile restraint". The international community can help that happen by weighing in with New Delhi to shun the path of aggressive nuclear posturing, as it has done in the wake of Anihant's so-called deterrence patrol.