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India, Israel may try to kill Pakistan's nuke capability

A Pakistani defence strategist on Thursday said a combined attempt by India and Israel to destroy his country's nuclear and missile capabilities was a serious possibility.

Zafar Iqbal Cheema, a university professor, painted the scenario at a seminar in Islamabad, quoting an Internet report which connected Israel with the two sub-kiloton nuclear tests that India carried out on May 13.

Cheema said an Israeli-Indian attempt at killing Pakistan's nuclear facilities would be in accord with the United States policy of counter-proliferation rather that non-proliferation.

Last week, Islamabad airport was closed amidst reports that a hostile aircraft had intruded the country's airspace.

Cheema, former diplomat Abdul Sattar and retired general K M Arif said Pakistan should go nuclear to redress the imbalance created by the Indian tests.

They said Pakistan was already under U S sanctions, and any further sanctions could not be more severe than those imposed on India.

Pakistan needs to test fission and low-yield nuclear devices, and a delivery missile to produce a credible deterrent to the Indian nuclear threat, he said.

UNI

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