Safety of nukes: Obama does not rule out intervention in Pak

Lalit K Jha

Washington, Apr 30 (PTI) Leaving open the option of US
intervention, President Barack Obama Thursday said his country
had "huge" strategic and security interests in making sure
that Pakistan is stable and its nuclear weapons do not fall
into militant hands.

"We want to respect their sovereignty, but we also
recognise that we have huge strategic interests -- huge
national security interests -- in making sure that Pakistan is
stable and that you don't end up having a nuclear-armed
militant state," Obama said in a prime-time news conference
marking the 100-day of his presidency.

But Obama said he was confident that Pakistan's nuclear
arsenal was secure, "because the Pakistani army, I think,
recognises the hazards of those weapons falling into the wrong
hands."

When pressed whether the United States would intervene
if Pakistan's nuclear arsenal were under threat, Obama,
speaking at his third White House press conference since
assuming office on January 20, said he would not respond to a
"hypothetical question."

"I am gravely concerned about the situation in Pakistan,
not because I think that they're immediately going to be
overrun and the Taliban would take over in Pakistan," Obama
said.

"I'm more concerned that the civilian government there
right now is very fragile," Obama said.

"I'm more concerned that the civilian government there
right now is very fragile and don't seem to have the capacity
to deliver basic services: schools, health care, rule of law,
a judicial system that works for the majority of the people."

At the same time, Obama said that the civilian
government of President Asif Ali Zardari, who is to visit
Washington next week, was unable to offer basic services that
would ensure people's support and loyalty.

He also said that Pakistan's military had just
recently started to change its traditional animosity towards
India.

"You're starting to see some recognition just in the
last few days that the obsession with India as the mortal
threat to Pakistan has been misguided and that their biggest
threat right now comes internally," Obama said.

Pakistan, the Muslim world's only nuclear weapons
state, has been critical of US infringement on its
sovereignty, particularly of regular drone attacks on
high-value terror targets in its restive tribal region.PTI AKJ
SAK