NEW DELHI (Reuters) -The International Atomic Energy Agency should take charge of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday, May 15, days after the nuclear-armed neighbors ended their worst military conflict in nearly three decades.
Deadly fighting broke out between the old enemies last week after India struck what it said were “terrorist camps” in Pakistan in retaliation for an attack in Indian Kashmir last month that killed 26 men, which it said was backed by Pakistan.
Islamabad had denied the allegations and both countries sent missiles and drones into each other’s airspace in the days that followed, before they reached a truce on Saturday.
“Are nuclear weapons safe in the hands of such an irresponsible and rogue nation?” Singh said while addressing soldiers in Indian Kashmir’s summer capital Srinagar. “I believe that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons should be taken under the supervision of IAEA.”
Pakistan’s foreign ministry condemned the remarks in a post on X.
Singh’s remarks show India’s “insecurity and frustration” about Pakistan’s “effective defence and deterrence against Indian aggression through conventional means,” the ministry said.
The IAEA is a Vienna-based U.N. watchdog which monitors nuclear programmes to ensure they are peaceful. The IAEA monitors several Indian civilian nuclear facilities under a 2008 agreement.
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