India-Pakistan shared the list of nuclear sites on New Year, adherence to the agreement continues

India and Pakistan continued a key security process by handing over lists of their nuclear installations and facilities to each other on the first day of the New Year. According to the Indian Foreign Ministry, this exchange takes place under the agreement according to which both the countries are committed not to attack each other’s nuclear sites.

This year this sequence was the 35th consecutive year. The list was shared in New Delhi and Islamabad at the same time. For the first time this process started on January 1, 1992 and since then it has been completed regularly every year.

Key points of the agreement

between india and pakistan "Prohibition on attacks on nuclear installations and facilities" The agreement was signed on 31 December 1988 and came into effect from 27 January 1991. Under this agreement, both countries prevent each other from damaging, destroying or inciting any third party to do so. This includes nuclear power plants, research reactors, uranium enrichment centers, fuel manufacturing units and storage sites for radioactive materials. Every year on January 1, both the countries have to share the details of these places including latitude and longitude. Its objective is to ensure that nuclear installations are not attacked accidentally or intentionally in the event of any crisis or war.

trust building process

Experts believe that this exchange is an important way to maintain trust between nuclear-armed countries like India and Pakistan. This process continued despite the Kargil War, military tensions of 2001–02, Uri attack of 2016, Pulwama and Balakot incidents of 2019 and the recent ‘Operation Sindoor’.

The India-Pakistan agreement came at a time when both countries were developing nuclear capabilities. India conducted its first nuclear test in the 1970s and the second in 1998. This agreement created an initial framework of trust in the nuclear field between the two countries.

Limitations and security concerns

The agreement only prevents attacks on nuclear installations, not the manufacture or deployment of weapons. There is no verification mechanism of any kind in this. Despite this, its adherence by both countries shows that they take the sensitivity of their nuclear infrastructure seriously. Experts have also been expressing concern from time to time that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of terrorists, which could pose a serious threat to regional and global security.