Human Wrongs Watch
By J C Suresh, IDN-InDepth News*, Toronto — The two long-time South Asian rivals, India and Pakistan, are engaged in the world’s most active nuclear arms race. India is estimated to have produced as many as 100 atomic weapons, and Pakistan is believed to have stockpiled a similar number if not more.
**Image: Indian and Pakistani national flags | Credit: paktribune.com
But, according to nuclear analysts, Hans M. Kristensen and Robert S. Norris, Islamabad is understood to be increasing its stockpile of warhead-grade nuclear material at a faster rate than any other country; it could in fact reach as many as 200 weapons over the next decade.
Added to this is the fact that years of talks between Pakistan and India on incremental military and nuclear confidence-building measures (CBM) have failed to prevent a regional weapons race and occasional flare-ups in bilateral relations.
India and Pakistan have agreed to alert each other subsequent to any atomic mishap. The countries have also promised not to attack each other’s nuclear installations and once a year exchange secret lists of such sites. But those limited assurances have not stopped the two sides from continuing the arms race.
