Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

ASSOCIATED PRESS OF PAKISTAN

NEWS SUMMARY
(04-07-2000)

No Sino-Pak cooperation in missile development in violation of MTCR: Sattar

ISLAMABAD, July 4 (APP): Pakistan on Monday reaffirmed that there has not been any cooperation between Pakistan and China inconsistent with Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). “I can reaffirm that Pakistan has not received any transfer inconsistent with China’s obligations to MTCR,” Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar told a press briefing. He was responding to a question on the recent U.S. media reports about alleged cooperation between Pakistan and China in missile development. “This news report attributed to John H Holum (US State Department’s official on arms control) is not new in its substance.” Sattar recalled that in 1993, when he was interim Foreign Minister, Pakistan-China cooperation was one of the major issues in the relationship between Pakistan and the United States.  At that time, he said, both Islamabad and Beijing had explained their positions that China had supplied a limited number of short-range tactical missiles to Pakistan which did not violate MTCR criteria which China had accepted.  “Since then there has been no allegation, to the best of our knowledge, that China having done anything inconsistent with its commitment to MTCR.