Islamabad: Making a push for a civil
nuclear deal similar to the one inked between India and the
US, the Pakistan Prime Minister on Wednesday said his country "fully
qualifies" for it as it has put in place effective security
and non-proliferation measures.
A "well established, foolproof safety and security
culture fully qualifies Pakistan for equal participation in
civil nuclear cooperation at the international level, which
would help us in addressing our immediate energy problems and
would bring greater stability as well," Yousuf Raza Gilani
said.
Chairing a special meeting of the Parliamentary
Committee on National Security this afternoon, he said, "The
objectives of nuclear non-proliferation, safety and security
can only be served and promoted through a non-discriminatory
paradigm for international cooperation in the peaceful uses of
nuclear energy."
Gilani said that his government considers nuclear
safety, security and safeguards as "vehicles for facilitating
international civil nuclear cooperation".
Pakistan, as a nuclear state, was cognisant of its
responsibilities and had "developed effective nuclear safety,
security and non-proliferation measures underpinned by
extensive legislative, regulatory and administrative
framework", he underlined.
The country has over 35 years of experience in
successfully operating nuclear power plants and highly trained
manpower, the PPP leader said.
"Nuclear power generation offers viable solutions for
energy security and addressing the challenge of climate
change," he added.
As the premier is the chairman of the National Command
Authority, the body that controls the nuclear arsenal, the
government "fully accepts the responsibility of nuclear
security", Gilani said.
Describing Pakistan as a democratic, progressive and
peaceful country, Gilani said, "Our socio-economic development
hinges on our ability to meet rapidly expanding energy
requirements...We need to explore all options to ensure a
reliable energy mix and civil nuclear power generation is
therefore an essential part of our national energy security
strategy."
Pakistan has been pushing the US and other Western
countries to grant it a special dispensation for civil nuclear
cooperation similar to the one given to India.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, April 07, 2010, 20:42