France wants India-style nuclear deal for Pakistan Updated at: 2243 PST, Friday, May 15, 2009
PARIS: French President Nicolas Sarkozy told his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari he wanted Islamabad to have a wide-ranging deal to buy nuclear equipment like the one obtained by its rival India, Pakistan said on Friday.
“France has agreed to transfer civilian nuclear technology to Pakistan They have agreed that Pakistan should be treated like India,” Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters after his country’s president met Sarkozy.
“President Sarkozy said, and I quote him, ‘What can be done for India can be done for Pakistan as well.’ This is a major development,” Qureshi said after the meeting in Paris between Sarkozy and President Asif Ali Zardari.
An official in Sarkozy’s office said France wanted Pakistan to improve its nuclear security but did not comment on the idea of an India-style deal.
“The president confirmed that we are prepared to cooperate with Pakistan in the area of nuclear safety,” he said.
Qureshi dismissed concerns about the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal and its proliferation history. Like India, Pakistan has also not signed up to the NPT.
“We will assure the world that we are an important and a responsible nuclear power and we can handle these matters without threatening or endangering anyone,” he said.
“Pakistan has no issues with the IAEA. We are willing to give international guarantees. We want the world to feel secure, and Pakistan will give all necessary guarantees,” Qureshi said when asked about the feasibility of a Pakistani nuclear deal.
France wants India-style nuclear deal for Pakistan - GEO.tv
What do you think of this? A ploy or sincere deal in the making?
did someone say chernobyl? I think that guy abul kalaam (who was made the president), his face and teeth and state of mind (he used to drink and eat cow waste) testifies how safe indian or oops soviet n technology is.