ISLAMABAD: A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday said that the alleged threat perception of Pakistan’s missile capabilities and launchers, raised by a US official, was unfortunate, terming the allegation as “baseless, lacking rationality and sense of history”.
Responding to media queries regarding the senior US official’s statement at the think tank, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a statement that the recent spate of US accusations against a major non-NATO ally would not be helpful. for the overall relationship, especially in the absence of any evidence in this regard.
“Pakistan has never had any ill will towards the US in any form or manner and this basic reality has not changed. On the contrary, Pakistan has made monumental sacrifices for this relationship and continues to suffer tremendously in sustaining the brunt of the consequences of US policies in the region,” she added.
The spokesman claimed that since 1954, Pakistan and the US have had a positive and broad relationship.
“It is regrettable that a US official has alluded to associating Pakistan with those perceived to have hostile relations with the US. While we ignore and shield displays of much stronger missile capability in our eastern neighborhood, concerns about Pakistan’s capabilities are seemingly being raised at the behest of others to further stress the already fragile strategic stability in the region,” it added.
The spokesman reiterated that Pakistan’s strategic capabilities were meant to defend its sovereignty and maintain peace and stability in South Asia.
“Pakistan cannot waive its right to develop capabilities commensurate with the need to maintain a credible minimum deterrent as well as evolving and dynamic threats. Since 2012, when U.S. officials began discussing the issue, various Pakistani governments, leadership, and officials have from time to time sought to positively address and address misplaced U.S. concerns,” the press statement quoted her as saying.
In addition, the spokesman said Pakistan had also made it abundantly clear that its strategic program and allied capabilities were solely intended to deter and thwart a clear and visible existential threat from its neighborhood and should not be perceived as a threat to any other country.
Any irrational assumption of hostile intent by Pakistan by any other country including the US “is confusing and illogical”.
Bearing in mind the deep sanctity of the strategic program for the people of Pakistan and for the defense of the country, she said, their clear reiteration and manifestation of its intent and purpose, any attempt to seek intrusion into it, in any form or manner, under any pretext. however it was neither conceivable nor possible.
“There is unshakable resolve and total agreement across the entire political and social spectrum of the country on this aspect,” it further pointed out.
Pakistan has always sought to engage constructively with the US on all issues, including the need to promote a balanced approach to security and stability in the region. They have had a long history of working together and want to build on that strong legacy, the spokesman said.
