China-Pak nuclear deal: US asks for Pak-China nuke arrangement details

[ajtr]

U.S. to oppose Chinese reactor sale to Pakistan​

The Obama administration's point man for countering arms proliferation said Thursday that the administration will vote against China's sale of nuclear reactors to Pakistan in the international Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

The announcement follows the visit of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to Pakistan, where she said the United States would be willing over time to discuss the prospect of U.S.-Pakistani nuclear cooperation.

Pakistan, India and Israel are the only three countries that have never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, a pact that promises nuclear cooperation in exchange for a pledge to forgo nuclear weapons. All three of those states have nuclear weapons, though Israel has not declared its nuclear arsenal.

During a hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Vann H. Van Diepen, the acting assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, said the United States will vote against any exemption for China to sell two civil nuclear reactors to Pakistan.

In response to a question from Rep. Ed Royce, California Republican, asking whether the United States would vote against the exemption for China, Mr. Van Diepen said, "Yes sir, by definition, we do not support any activity that goes against the guidelines."

The 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group is an international forum designed to limit sales of nuclear technology.

Earlier, Mr. Van Diepen said, "Based on the facts we are aware of, it would occur to us that this sale would not be allowed to occur without an exemption of the NSG."

However, Mr. Van Diepen added that while the United States can vote against an exemption, it cannot stop China if that nation decides to sell Pakistan the reactors without special permission from the NSG.

In 2008, India and the United States signed a nuclear cooperation agreement that would give India access to reactors and other nuclear technology without having to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Pakistan and India are archrivals.

Earlier this week in Pakistan, Mrs. Clinton told Pakistani journalists, "In our dialogue with the Pakistani government, we have clearly said we will work with them on civil nuclear energy."She added, "It took years to do it with India. But we are committed to pursuing it and trying to overcome the obstacles that might stand in the way, because we think it is important to get as much of a varied source of energy all connected to the grid."

China last spring signed a $2.4 billion agreement with Pakistan to supply two 340-megawatt reactors to Pakistan.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told reporters in Beijing June 24 that China's nuclear cooperation with Pakistan is for peaceful purposes and in line with international obligations of both countries.

China in the past was a major supplier of nuclear technology to Pakistan, and U.S. intelligence officials said its bomb design is modeled after China's nuclear weapons.

A senior State Department official said, "Pakistan has profound energy needs, and we are working with Pakistan to try to increase its energy production and the diversity of its energy resources."

The official said, "In the abstract, nuclear power at some point can be part of that mix; in the near to midterm, we are focused on nonnuclear sources of energy."

The official said the United States is "willing to have a conversation about civilian nuclear power, but there is a lot that Pakistan is going to have to do, given its past record" - a reference to the covert nuclear supplier group led by Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan that supplied nuclear bomb designs and material to Iran, Libya and Pakistan.

Henry Sokolski, director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center, said it is not clear when and how the United States would open the door to nuclear exports to Pakistan.

"Is Washington blocking China so the Obama administration can be in control of the terms under which it will allow a Chinese sale to Pakistan?" Mr. Sokolski asked. "Or is it that only the United States wants to be the one making the reactor sale? I think it's the former; the mystery is what we will ask for in exchange."

In the hearing, Mr. Van Dieppen also said Chinese entities continue to sell arms to rogue states in violation of anti-arms-proliferation controls.He said that while China has made some progress in establishing arms-export controls, Chinese companies continue to engage in dangerous sales to countries they should not.

"Our most persistent problem is that individual Chinese entities continue to engage in proliferation activities," he said.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Pakistan, India and Israel are the only three countries that have never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty,

This statement is wrong, China did not sign NPT until the 1990's, and they have been a major proliferator before and and after signing revealing the flaws of the treaty.

 

[ajtr]

Pakistan, India and Israel are the only three countries that have never signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty,

This statement is wrong, China did not sign NPT until the 1990's, and they have been a major proliferator before and and after signing revealing the flaws of the treaty.

All sins of P5 are pardonable.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

All sins of P5 are pardonable.

and include Pak in there too.

 

[ajtr]

and include Pak in there too.

Pak is just free-boarder.Not always it get pardoned like P5.

 

[S.A.T.A]

I even doubt if this whole thing will travel so far as the NSG council.its not just the Americans,but several European countries who will be beat against allowing China selling reactors to a nation literally in the eye of the 'war on terror' storm.China very well knows it cannot strum the grandfather clause any longer and simply does not have the wherewithal to browbeat the European nations to push the Pakistani case.Pakistan is too small a fry for China to upset its credibility in the NSG(its strategic ties with that country notwithstanding)

 

[Oracle]

India steps up NSG diplomacy to counter China-Pak nuke deal

NEW DELHI: The US may have come out publicly against the China-Pakistan nuclear deal, but India is not leaving anything to chance and has intensified lobbying with key members of the 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) ahead of the nuclear cartel's next meeting in Vienna.

India has not only zeroed in on the 'Big 4' in the NSG - the US, France, Russia and Britain - but is also reaching out to other middling NSG members to project the deal's negative impact on the global non-proliferation regime and the fragile security situation in South Asia.

The government has asked its missions in these key NSG countries to convey the pitfalls of the deal and how it is targeted against India's vital interests, sources close to the government told IANS.

The Indian group in Track II dialogue on the India-US relations on Friday met to firm up a strategy to counter the deal at various levels, said the sources. The Track II group from the Indian side includes veteran diplomats and security experts like Naresh Chandra, former Indian ambassador to the US, and Vice Admiral (retd) P.S. Das, who is also involved with India-China Track II dialogue process.

Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and the joint secretaries dealing with Pakistan and with China, Y.K. Sinha and Gautam Bambawale respectively, also participated in the discussions, added the sources.

India's counter-attack strategy will revolve around three key points. First, the Chinese deal to supply two additional reactors, Chashma-3 and Chashma 4, was not "grandfathered," under an earlier arrangement as China claims. China did not disclose two additional reactors at the time of joining the NSG in 2004.

Second, Indian interlocutors will argue that there is no comparison between India's deal with the US to that of China's with Pakistan as New Delhi was granted the clean waiver on account of its widely acknowledged impeccable non-proliferation record.

Thirdly, India will contend that it's not an energy deal, but a ploy to contain New Delhi by bolstering Pakistan's capacity to produce more nuclear weapons and will highlight the alleged abuse of foreign aid by Islamabad to modernize its military machine.

The NSG is likely to meet in Vienna in September where two years ago around the same time the NSG granted a one-time clean waiver to India to resume global nuclear trade.

China's contentious deal to supply two additional nuclear reactors to Pakistan could figure in the discussions.

At the NSG's June 21-25 plenary at Christchurch, New Zealand, there was hush-hush over the deal, with only an oblique reference to "consultations and transparency" about non-NSG states.

India is surprised that some NSG members like New Zealand, Austria and Ireland, who were so critical of the India-US nuclear deal, have not voiced objections to the Sino-Pakistan deal despite Islamabad's dubious proliferation record as epitomized by its illegal A.Q. Khan network.

India's apprehension is that given China's growing global clout and its strong economic ties with virtually all influential NSG countries, the NSG may look the other way and let China go ahead with the deal which is clearly in violation of its existing guidelines, said the sources.

In a shot in the arm for India, the US recently said it will vote against China's proposed sale of two civil nuclear reactors to Pakistan when the issue comes up before the NSG.

Lalit Mansingh, a former ambassador of India to the US, warns against complacency. "It's a positive sign. But we should not take the US for granted. The Obama administration is in the middle of an economic crisis and may not want to open another front with China on the issue," Mansingh told IANS.

Mansingh is heading to Singapore July-end to participate in the India-China-Pakistan trialogue where the deal is likely to figure.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...r-China-Pak-nuke-deal/articleshow/6215324.cms

 

[ajtr]

India Seeks Aid in Blocking China-Pakistan Atomic Deal​

Friday, Aug. 27, 2010

India is seeking the backing of six smaller nuclear export control group nations in its quest to prevent China from building two new nuclear reactors in Pakistan, the Times of India reported today (see GSN, July 23).
New Delhi is using "back channels" in seeking assistance from six Nuclear Suppliers Group nations: Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland. The six nations previously collaboration in an unsuccessful bid to prevent the group from giving New Delhi a waiver to import nuclear materials and technology.
The 46-state entity seeks to limit the sale of member nations' nuclear exports to countries that have signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Neighboring rivals Pakistan and India have both developed nuclear weapons outside the arms control treaty.
Well-informed sources said New Delhi has asked the six nations to address China's plan to provide Islamabad with another two nuclear power reactors at the Chashma atomic site.
"There is a specific plan to make them realize what is going on as they opposed [the] nuclear commerce waiver for India right till the end in 2008," a source said. "We want to see how they react now as China has completely ignored them in going ahead with its plan to supply fresh reactors to Pakistan."
The source said the Indian government has word that China is nearing readiness to begin work for two pressurized water reactors at the nuclear complex's No. 3 and 4 stations.
Beijing has maintained the deal does not violate NSG guidelines as China built the first two Chashma reactors prior to joining the export control regime in 2004. China has yet to formally notify the group of its intentions to construct the two additional power reactors, the Times reported.
New Delhi has already expressed its concerns over the nuclear deal to NSG heavyweights the United Kingdom and the United States, which has also made known its objections to the deal. China remains undeterred.
Many of the less-powerful NSG states are privately furious over Beijing's handling of the matter, according to an official. New Delhi hopes to use this anger in mounting a wider NSG campaign against the deal.
New Delhi maintains Beijing cannot grandfather the new reactors into the Chashma site as it has not mentioned the matter since joining the Nuclear Suppliers Group. China only declared its intentions once India had already achieved a breakthrough in winning an NSG waiver to rejoin the international civilian nuclear marketplace after years as an atomic pariah (Sachin Parashar, Times of India, Aug. 27).

 

[ajtr]

What about chinese track record in nuke proliferation???

China-Pak nuke deal may not get NSG nod given Pak's past: US​

With China pressing ahead on its controversial decision to supply two additional nuclear reactors to Pakistan, the US today indicated that the deal may not get the approval of the 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) given Islamabad's track record.
Asked if the US was concerned over China's plans to supply additional reactors to Pakistan, US Ambassador to India Timothy J Roemer said, "I am not sure it will happen in Pakistan, given their track record. This is very important issue in respect to China."

He also contrasted Pakistan's track record with India and said the Indo-US civil nuclear partnership "says loudly to the world community (that) we trust India given its track record on the proliferation issues.

"One of the fundamental important issues for the US is not only India's flawless track record and high-trust but also the US efforts to try as Prime Minister Singh has said to provide more inclusive growth to Indians..."

Significantly, US National Nuclear Security Administration chief Thomas D'Agostino, while attending the International Atomic Energy Agency General Conference in Vienna, Austria earlier this week, said, "We look to engage with China on these particular issues...my focus is to use the framework of the mechanisms that we have in the NSG."

"We are going to use the NSG to the best of our abilities and use all of the tools that we have in that forum to address specific nuclear arrangements that are made, whether it is with China, Pakistan or a variety of other countries," D'Agostino said.

The US has argued the Pakistan-China deal would require a waiver from the 46-member group, which seeks to restrict atomic exports to countries that have signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Islamabad has not signed the pact.

The US sought and won a special exemption from NSG while negotiating a landmark atomic trade deal with India, another nuclear-armed nation that has not joined the treaty. But it happened due to flawless track record of India in the non-proliferation field.

However, during the negotiations, China was among a group of nations to criticize the Indo-US deal before ultimately granting the waiver.

The China-Pak nuclear deal has been a cause of concern for many because of Pakistan's history as a nuclear proliferator, mounting instability within that country and worries the agreement would undermine the nonproliferation regime.

 

[SHASH2K2]

China should be stopped from building N-reactors for Pak

China should be stopped from going ahead with its move to transfer new atomic reactors to Pakistan which is "not a responsible nuclear power," a top American Congressman has said. "Pakistan greatly damaged global security by allowing this rogue (nuclear scientist AQ Khan) free reign in that country. China's plan to build another two nuclear reactors in Pakistan violates Nuclear Suppliers' Group rules. It should be stopped," Congressman Ed Royce said at a Congressional hearing.
He recalled that years ago, he had raised the issue of the "ring magnets" that China was transferring to Pakistan "to develop a nuclear weapon, that was obviously what was intended on the part of Pakistan."

Royce, who is co-chair of the Congressional India Caucus, said at the hearing on nuclear cooperation and non-proliferation: "Now we know that China's irresponsibility in proliferation ... gave rise to the capability of Pakistan, which subsequently trumped China's irresponsibility with its own, because that knew no limits in terms of AQ Khan's ability to proliferate."

"So the fact that AQ Khan, supposedly Pakistan's most popular man, two weeks ago went on Pakistani television and spoke about his future as the nation's president that should be more than troubling to us in terms of Pakistan and the future. The government there just is not a responsible nuclear power. That needs to be addressed," Royce said.

Participating in the Congressional hearing held by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, several other US lawmakers also expressed concerns about the latest Chinese move to build two nuclear reactors to Pakistan.

"If China proceeds with the sale of the two new reactors to Pakistan, what is the likely impact on the Nuclear Suppliers Group? Should the US attempt to persuade the NSG to disapprove the sale? Should China be expelled from the NSG? What is the cost of doing nothing?" Congressman Joe Wilson asked.

 

[Patriot]

Can China sell one GW Nuclear Power Reactor to Pakistan? | Indian Defence Review
By B Raman


According to the Reuters news agency, Mr.Qiu Jiangang, Vice-President of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), told a conference at Beijing on September 20,2010, that China and Pakistan had signed contracts under which two more nuclear power stations of 300 MWs each (Chashma III and Chashma IV) would be set up by the CNNC at Chashma in Pakistan's Punjab.These would be similar to Chinese-constructed Chashma I, which is already operating, and Chashma II which is under construction. This was already known.

What was new in his statement was his disclosure that the CNNC was holding talks with the Pakistani authorities for the supply of a bigger nuclear power station of one gigawatt capacity. He did not indicate when the talks started, at what stage are the talks presently and where it is proposed to set up the new bigger power station if the talks end in an agreement.


The Chashma technology is Chinese. China has, therefore, the right to export it, but in the case of Pakistan, it needs the clearance of the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG), since Pakistan is not a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The Reuters news agency has quoted the CNNC as stating as follows in a recent article carried by the journal "Seeking Truth", published by the Communist Party of China: "We must rely on the Pakistan Chashma nuclear power project to improve our ability to contract for nuclear power projects abroad, and to open up the foreign market for nuclear energy."

The Chashma technology is Chinese. China has, therefore, the right to export it, but in the case of Pakistan, it needs the clearance of the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG), since Pakistan is not a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Beijing has been trying to circumvent the need for prior clearance by the NSG by projecting Chashma III and IV as coming under the purview of the original agreement on Chashma I ( the grand-father provision ). Its contention has not yet been accepted by some NSG member-countries, including the US. Despite this, Beijing has hinted on more than one occasion that it will go ahead with the supply of Chashma III and IV even without the approval of the NSG.

However, China's one gigawatt technology is not indigenous. China bought it from Areva, a French company formed by the merger of Frematome, Cogema and Technicatome.In November 2007, AREVA agreed to a €8 billion deal with the China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group to supply them with two EPRs (European Pressurised Reactor) in Taishan, Guangdong. Under the terms of the agreement, AREVA will also help operate the plant, including the reprocessing of the spent fuel.

Based on the EPR technology of French origin,the Chinese claim to have developed a technology of their own called CPR–1000 (Chinese Pressurised Reactor). According to the magazine "Nuclear Engineering International, "the CPR-1000 is a Generation II, 1080MW pressurized water reactor, based on French- three-loop design. Over 60 design improvements have been made by the Chinese, including modifications to the control room, fuel, and the introduction of half speed turbo generators (supplied by Alstom). However, Areva retains intellectual property rights for the CPR-1000, which constrains overseas sales. To sell abroad the Chinese would need agreement from Areva on a case-by-case basis, which seems unlikely as the CPR-1000 could be in competition with the Areva/MHI Atmea 1 design."

It is understood Pakistan has been trying to get from the Chinese the CPR–1000 reactor. This would require two approvals—- from the Areva of France which sold the technology to the Chinese while retaining the intellectual property rights and the NSG. Even if one accepts the plausibility that Chashma III and IV could be grand-fathered under the original agreement relating to Chashma I, the grand-father clause cannot apply to the CPR–1000 reactor, which will have three times the capacity of Chashma I and whose technology was acquired by the Chinese three years after China joined the NSG after accepting its safeguards against sales to non-signatories of the NPT.

The matter needs to be strongly taken up by the Government of India with the French and the NSG members.

 

[ajtr]

China-Pakistan Deal Harbinger of Nuclear Exceptionalism?​

Reports last week suggested that China is considering investing in a large, 1,000-megawatt reactor in Pakistan, in addition to the two small reactors recently agreed upon by the two countries. If validated, the reports indicate that Chinese policymakers have given the go-ahead to a nuclear development plan prioritizing early export of indigenous large reactors, while simultaneously underlining Beijing's willingness and ability to pursue a policy of nuclear exceptionalism in the subcontinent.

The backstory on the reported deal dates back to 2004, when the smaller State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation (SNPTC) won a momentous decision from Chinese planners to proceed with a domestic nuclear development plan based around imported designs. The plan beat out a competing proposal by China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), which preferred a more "indigenous" route to development. ...

 

[anoop_mig25]

why pakistan need "CPR–1000 (Chinese Pressurised Reactor)."i.e power to produce one gigawatt of energy

 

[ajtr]

India expresses concern over China supplying nuclear reactors to Pak​

New Delhi, Oct 11 (ANI): Minister of State for Science and Technology Prithviraj Chavan has expressed concern over China supplying nuclear reactors to Pakistan, and urged the global community to look at the collaboration considering Islamabad's track record on nuclear technology.


Buzz up!
"Our concern is Pakistan does not have a good track record as we have. The global community has to very closely look at the collaboration. We have expressed our concerns at the appropriate place, citing previous illegal exchanges of nuclear technology," said Chavan, while talking to the media persons on the sidelines of the silver jubilee celebrations of the Fast Breeder Test Reactor and Radiometallurgy Laboratory at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu on Saturday.


Further talking about granting permission to private domestic or foreign companies operate nuclear power stations amending Atomic Energy Act, Chavan said the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government does not find a need to change the law.

"Right now money is not an issue to allow them operate. We are inviting domestic government owned companies as minority partners for Nuclear Power Corporation of India," said Chavan adding the Government is also thinking of providing more autonomy to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB).

"There is an internal debate as to the shape of additional autonomy that AERB should be given. We are looking at African countries to buy uranium mines, adopting the ONGC model," he added. (ANI)

 

[LETHALFORCE]

what is to stop India from also buying from China??

 

[ajtr]

what is to stop India from also buying from China??

security problems.reactors can be bugged easily

 

[ajtr]

Pakistan to renew bid for nuclear deal with US: Report​

NEW YORK, Oct 14 (APP): Pakistan is to renew it's bid to seek a civilian nuclear deal similar to one the U.S. concluded with India at the top-level "strategic dialogue" between the two countries next week, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing Pakistani officials. But the newspaper said that the move "threatens to further strain relations that are already tense over Islamabad's refusal to attack Taliban havens on its soil." Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is scheduled to hold the dialogue with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington on Oct 22.
"Islamabad views a civilian nuclear deal with the U.S. as a key compromise to show Pakistan is on a level with its rival India in the eyes of the U.S. Such a deal would assuage fears here that Washington has any intention of dismantling Pakistan's nuclear programme," the Journal said in a dispatch from Pakistan's capital.
"The U.S. is unlikely to give in to the demands, Pakistan officials acknowledge, adding a further level of mistrust to a relationship already bedeviled by frustration in Washington over Pakistan's failure to crack down on Taliban militants that attack U.S. troops over the border in Afghanistan".
The Wall Street Journal said Washington was concerned about Pakistan's previous history of proliferation—an obvious reference to A Q Khan network—and continued ramping up of its military nuclear arsenal, which it is developing as a deterrent to India, possibly with Chinese aid. The dispatch pointed out that US had turned down Pakistan's requests for a civilian nuclear deal in the past.
The dispatch said, "The US views next week's talks as key to getting Pakistan to move against militancy in return for billions of dollars in civilian and military aid." Help with civilian nuclear power, a role China currently fulfills, could help improve ties, some analysts say.
It will be the third such meeting since March, underscoring the pivotal role relations with Pakistan plays in U.S. foreign policy.
A U.S. official said the issue wasn't on the official agenda for the meeting but could easily be raised.

 

[ajtr]

US asks for Pak-China nuke arrangement details​

ISLAMABAD: The US has asked Pakistan to provide more information about a civilian nuclear arrangement it has concluded with China, America's special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke has said.

Holbrooke's statement on the nuclear issue, made during an interview with visiting Pakistani journalists, followed an earlier comment by his deputy, Frank Ruggiero, who told reporters in Washington that the US was "not in any discussions with the Pakistanis on civil nuclear cooperation".

Pakistan may "quietly try to persuade the US at least to withdraw its objection to an arrangement it has made with China for building new civil nuclear plants at Chashma," the Dawn newspaper quoted its sources as saying.

Holbrooke, when asked to comment on US objections to the arrangement, said: "We have asked for more information on the Chinese-Pakistan arrangement to see how they fit in with international regimes".

Last month, US Under Secretary of State for Nuclear Security Thomas D'Agostino said the US believed that the transfer of new reactors to Pakistan extended beyond the cooperation China had reached with Pakistan before joining the Nuclear Suppliers Group in 2004.

He said that Beijing needs to seek the permission of the NSG before making further investments.

China insists that the arrangement with Pakistan was made before it joined the NSG and, therefore, NSG restrictions do not apply to this deal.

Holbrooke acknowledged holding private conversations with Pakistani officials on Islamabad's desire for a civil nuclear deal like the one the US concluded with India in 2008.

"We are well aware of Pakistani strategic goal and desire. It's one of the many things we have talked about frankly in private with our friends in Pakistan," he said.

On the second day of the third round of the Pakistan-US strategic dialogue yesterday, some Pakistani officials indicated that enhancing nuclear energy was one of Islamabad's "main strategic goals".

The US has made it clear that it is not offering a nuclear deal to Pakistan as of now.

In the interview with Pakistani journalists, Holbrooke also emphasised the need for military action against militants hiding in North Waziristan tribal region.

Holbrooke also acknowledged that Pakistan-India tensions affected the situation in Afghanistan and the US is willing to help reduce tensions.

But he made it clear that the US could not play any mediatory role in resolving the Kashmir dispute, the main cause for tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations.

Read more: US asks for Pak-China nuke arrangement details - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...details/articleshow/6792300.cms#ixzz136HJ2br2

 

[SHASH2K2]

US won't object to N-deal between Pakistan and China: US envoy​

ISLAMABAD: The US will not object to any civil nuclear deal between Pakistan and China if it abides by international rules of such agreements, and chances of the US making such a deal with Pakistan too cannot be ruled out, the American envoy here has said.

US Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter said Friday that the US had recently made a civil nuclear deal with India and the chances of such a deal with Pakistan also cannot be ruled out, the Express Tribune reported.

Munter made the remarks while talking to media here.

Answering a question on the Pakistan's efforts to fight terrorism, he said the US wants Pakistan to launch a military operation in North Waziristan soon.

Munter said he would leave it to the Pakistan Army to decide when to launch such an operation.

The army has assured the US that they will take action in North Waziristan at the right time.

Pakistan has long been under pressure from the US to launch a military offensive in North Waziristan.

The foreign office, however, has denied being under US pressure to launch an offensive in the northwestern region which the US calls a "hub of militant activity", saying that the operation will be launched only if it is in Pakistan's "interest", the report said.

Last month, the daily reported that the government had authorised army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani to take a final decision on when and how to launch a military operation in the North Waziristan tribal region.

Read more: US won't object to N-deal between Pakistan and China: US envoy - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...S-envoy/articleshow/7123471.cms#ixzz18V8mpq2u

 

[LETHALFORCE]

did the death of common Pakistanis was a ever matter to pakistani military and ruling elites?

Pound of flesh is for them not for the common pakistanis.

US is also blocking the nuclear deal with China.