US Army to ‘protect’ Pakistan’s nuclear sites

In face of a growing anti-Americanism among the Pakistan military, the US army moves to train a ‘crack unit’ to thwart possible attacks on the country’s nuclear facilities.

The unit would be responsible to take back Pakistani nuclear weapons in the event the militants gain access to the strategic devices and materials, the Pakistani daily The Nation reported Sunday.

The measure is taken as the US military fears the possibility of an attack “from inside the country’s security apparatus,” added the report.

The daily notes that the rising anti-Americanism among the Pakistani military personnel, as well as a series of attacks on sensitive installations over the past two years, has prompted the US officials to take the action.

“There have been attacks on (Pakistani) army bases which stored nuclear weapons and there have been breaches and infiltrations by terrorists into military facilities,” Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, a former CIA officer who used to run the US energy department’s intelligence unit, was quoted as saying.

Larssen claimed the nuclear Pakistan houses “the highest density of extremists in the world,” declaring that the US has the right to be concerned over the issue.

Heated debate has been going on between the US and Pakistani officials over the security of its nuclear facilities over the past two weeks.

There have been reports that US officials’ primary goal is to gain access to and disable or neutralize Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, which they consider as a possible threat to US and Israeli security.

Pakistani nuclear arms have also been referred to as an “Islamic Bomb” in the American and Israeli press and political circles, highlighting their mindset regarding the country’s atomic weapons, which was meant to rival India’s. India’s nuclear arms, however, have never been raised as a concern in western circles.

In 2007, militants attacked military facilities at Sargodha, in Punjab, and at Kamra, in Attock district, which are thought to house nuclear weapons.

In August 2008, militants blew up the gates to the Wah weapons complex in Punjab. The attack left 63 people dead.