Islamabad offers NSG to set up nuke reactors in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Peeved over persistent refusal by the US for a deal similar to the Indo-US civil nuclear agreement, Pakistan has offered the member states of Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to set up nuclear power reactors on its soil with no "interference" in their operation.

"The NSG member countries have been told that in case of their readiness to establish nuclear reactors, only they could operate them and Pakistani scientists would do nothing with those reactors," Pakistan Foreign Minister, Khurshid M Kasuri said.

Moreover, the NSG states could also take back the spent fuel of the nuclear reactors established by them, Kasuri said.

He said Pakistan was all willing to remove the concerns, if any, of the countries including the NSG countries for the acquisition of nuclear power reactors to meet the growing energy demands of Pakistan.

The offer that Pakistan had made was linked to the establishment of "nuclear parks" by the NSG member states, Kasuri said.

Established in 1975, the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is comprised of 45 nuclear supplier states including China, Russia and the United States that have voluntarily agreed to coordinate their export controls governing transfers of nuclear-related equipment and technology to non-nuclear-weapon states.

Kasuri said Pakistan would continue with its efforts to acquire nuclear reactors for civilian purposes.

He said Pakistan was a recognised nuclear state and it had well-developed nuclear infrastructure.