News Desk: In a stunning revelation, a Foreign Affairs report citing US intelligence sources claims that Pakistan is secretly developing an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capable of striking the continental United States, pushing Islamabad closer to being viewed as a full-scale nuclear adversary by Washington.
The report, while primarily focused on the growing nuclear axis between China and Russia, flags Pakistan’s alarming nuclear ambitions, stating that despite Islamabad’s public claim of focusing only on deterring India, US agencies believe the country’s military is preparing to cross a dangerous threshold.
“If Pakistan acquires an ICBM, Washington will have no choice but to treat the country as a nuclear adversary,” the report warns, underlining a dramatic shift in US strategic posture.
The motive, intelligence officials suggest, may be to deter US intervention in any future India-Pakistan conflict or to prevent pre-emptive strikes on its nuclear facilities.
A New Nuclear Front for America?
The implications are severe. With Russia shredding arms control pacts, China rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal, and North Korea and Iran remaining volatile threats, Pakistan’s emergence as a potential ICBM state opens a fourth nuclear front for US national security planners.
“No country with ICBMs that can target the United States is considered a friend,” the report states grimly. “Mounting nuclear dangers now lurk in every region of vital interest to the US.”
Pakistan’s Long Road to the Nuclear Club
Pakistan’s nuclear journey began in the 1970s after India’s first nuclear test and culminated in its own 1998 nuclear tests, cementing its status as a nuclear-armed nation. The country now reportedly possesses around 165 nuclear warheads, including tactical nuclear weapons designed for battlefield use.
Pakistan remains outside major global non-proliferation frameworks, having refused to sign the NPT or CTBT, reinforcing its stance on strategic autonomy over its nuclear policy.
Strategic Shift or Global Alarm?
Analysts suggest that if Pakistan’s ICBM programme is confirmed, it could trigger major strategic recalibrations across the region and reshape US-Pakistan ties, possibly pushing Washington toward tough sanctions, military planning, or diplomatic isolation of Pakistan.
The report signals a chilling turn in South Asia’s already tense nuclear landscape—one that could soon threaten American shores.
