Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said that Pakistan’s “nuclear bogey” in response to the abrogation of Article 370 shows that it does not have faith in its army, The Economic Times reported.
“When you don’t have confidence in the abilities of your conventional forces to deter the adversary, you start using the nuclear bogey,” the Army chief told The Economic Times.
He further said that Pakistan seemed to have made “precautionary deployments” along the Line of Control “even as it has given a free run to terror organisation[s] operating from its soil.” He declared that if Pakistan is successful in conducting a terror attack, it should expect retaliation from India and said that India is fully prepared for the same.
What is Pakistan’s Nuclear Policy?
Since conducting its second nuclear tests, Pokhran-II, in 1998, India has a 'no first use' policy, which means it has pledged to not strike first. However, it retained the right to retaliate in response to a strike.
Meanwhile, Pakistan does not have a stated 'no first use' policy. Its nuclear policy is India-centric, as it is driven by threat to its security from India. The country retains the option of using nuclear weapons first in the event of a war.
Indian defence minister Rajnath Singh on 16 August had said that even though India has adhered to the no first use policy, “what happens in the future will depend on circumstances”.
On being asked about the statement by Rajnath Singh, Military spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor at a media briefing on Wednesday, 4 September said, "We don't have any 'no first use' policy. Our weapons are for deterrence. As far as India is concerned, it us up to them to formulate any policy.”
(With inputs from The Economic Times, PTI)
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