Pakistan condemns US attack on Iran's nuclear facilities
Lahore (PTI): Pakistan on Sunday condemned the US attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities, calling them a violation of international law and warning of the risk of further escalation of violence in the region.
Pakistan's condemnation came a day after Pakistan backed US President Donald Trump as a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize.
The US on early Sunday morning attacked Iran's Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites with the aim of destroying the country's nuclear programme. US President Trump warned of additional strikes if Iran retaliates.
Reacting to the development, the Foreign Office (FO) of Pakistan in a statement said: "Pakistan condemns the US attacks on the nuclear facilities of Iran, which follow the series of attacks by Israel. We are gravely concerned at the possible further escalation of tensions in the region."
Pakistan said that these attacks "violate all norms of international law" and that Iran has the legitimate right to defend itself under the UN Charter.
"The unprecedented escalation of tensions and violence owing to ongoing aggression against Iran is deeply disturbing. Any further escalation of tensions will have severely damaging implications for the region and beyond," it said.
The Foreign Office further said: "We emphasise the imperative need to respect civilian lives and properties and immediately bring the conflict to an end.
It proposed a dialogue among the stakeholders to address the crises in the region.
"All parties must adhere to international law, particularly international humanitarian law," the FO said.
"Recourse to dialogue and diplomacy in line with the principles and purposes of the UN Charter remains the only viable pathway to resolve the crises in the region," it said.
Interestingly, the Pakistan government on Saturday said it will formally recommend US President Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for his "decisive diplomatic intervention" during the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
Meanwhile, none of the main leaders of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Peoples Party have yet issued any statement on the US attack on Iran's three nuclear sites, which analysts say is because of the "military establishment's cordial relations with US President Donald Trump."
The Opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan also strongly condemned the Trump administration for "blatant violation of Iran’s sovereignty and breach of international law."
"Israel has finally and cunningly succeeded in convincing the United States to directly attack Iran’s three nuclear installations — despite both US intelligence and the IAEA clearly stating there is no evidence that Iran is building a nuclear bomb," Zulfi Bokhari, PTI's senior leader and close aide to Khan, said.
Every time Iran has chosen the path of diplomacy, it has been deceived and attacked. The latest aggression is a blatant violation of Iran’s sovereignty and a clear breach of international law.
"We, the people of Pakistan, strongly condemn the United States’ attack on Iran," Bokhari said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s "relentless greed to hold on to power has destabilised the entire Middle East", he said.
"He has proven to be, single-handedly, the greatest threat to peace and prosperity in the region — and potentially, the world," he added.
Other than Pakistan, Muslim nations like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iraq and Oman condemned the targeting of Iranian nuclear facilities by the US.
"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is following with deep concern the developments in the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly the targeting of Iranian nuclear facilities by the United States of America," the Saudi Foreign Ministry posted on X.
"The Kingdom reaffirms the contents of its statement on June 13, 2025, in which it condemned and denounced the violation of the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran," it said.
Qatar expressed its regret over the deterioration of the situation following the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities. It warned that the current dangerous tensions in the region will lead to disastrous repercussions at the regional and international levels.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
