| WASHINGTON - October 30 - The war in Afghanistan has created a real concern that a domestic political
uprising in Pakistan could cause its nuclear weapons and materials to fall
into the hands of pro-Taliban forces. In response to this concern, the
U.S. has been mulling the option of giving Pakistan permissive action links
(PALs), which are highly sophisticated electronic locks that prevent
unauthorized individuals from detonating a nuclear weapon. The U.S. should
not give Pakistan PAL technology.
"There are many downsides to giving Pakistan PAL technology," said John
Isaacs, President of Council for a Livable World. "First and foremost, it
would probably violate the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)."
The 1968 NPT, signed by 187 countries, prohibits the five recognized
nuclear weapon states from assisting or encouraging any non-nuclear weapon
state to manufacture or acquire nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive
devices. PALs are an integral part of weapon design and supplying them to
another state would thus be considered nuclear assistance. Pakistan,
despite the fact that it possesses nuclear weapons, has not signed the NPT
and is barred from receiving nuclear assistance.
Aiding Pakistan's nuclear program would also set a dangerous precedent for
other nuclear weapon states who may want to engage in nuclear cooperation
with proliferators. For instance, China could increase its nuclear
cooperation with Pakistan, and Russia with India and Iran.
Currently, Pakistan is believed to possess enough fissile materials for
between 30 and 50 nuclear bombs, and fissile cores are likely stored
separate from other weapon components. This condition of separability in
itself acts as a preventative measure against unauthorized use of nuclear
weapons. PALs could simply give Pakistan an incentive to go ahead and
maintain fully assembled nuclear weapons, and even to operationally deploy
them, thereby increasing nuclear dangers in South Asia.
"The technology could make Pakistan less risk-averse with regard to
weaponization and deployment," said Steve LaMontagne, a nonproliferation
expert at the Council for a Livable World Education Fund.
PALs also involve highly classified encryption technology and could give
away sensitive information about the types of weapons in the U.S. nuclear
arsenal. Pakistan might therefore use PAL technology to derive some of the
secrets of advanced nuclear weapon design in order to further its nuclear
program.
"Instead of giving Pakistan PAL technology, the U.S. should focus on steps
that promote political stability in Pakistan without violating the NPT,
sacrificing U.S. nonproliferation goals, or furthering Pakistan's nuclear
weapons program," LaMontagne added. "Our efforts should concentrate on
economic assistance, humanitarian aid, and debt relief, but not on this
type of nuclear cooperation."
www.clw.org
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