Beijing, Nov 18: Faced with a CIA report that China continues to provide nuclear assistance to Pakistan, Beijing today offered to enforce safeguards of international atomic energy agency on its "peaceful" nuclear energy cooperation with its close ally Islamabad. "The cooperation between China and Pakistan in the nuclear energy cooperation is purely for peaceful purposes and does not violate any non-proliferation obligations or China's export controls. We are also willing to have the IAEA safeguards," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told reporters here.
Asked to comment on a recent report by the central intelligence agency that it cannot rule out links between Chinese firms and Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme despite Beijing's assurances that it will provide no such help, Liu said China was not engaged in proliferation of nuclear technology.
"I like to reiterate that China is a signatory to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and is resolutely opposed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction of any kind," he said.
At the same time, Lu maintained that China supports the peaceful use of nuclear energy under the strict safeguards of the IAEA.
Bureau Report