Any precedent that legitimizes or supports strikes on nuclear infrastructure increases security risks for Pakistan.
The recent wave of military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities – and Iran’s counter-attacks – amplified security concerns among regional and global actors alike. For countries like Pakistan, which shares a 909-kilometer border with Iran, the attacks are more than a Middle Eastern security issue. During the conflict, Pakistan unequivocally stood with Iran diplomatically, condemning both the Israeli and U.S. attacks and calling upon the international community to adhere to the rule-based order for peace and stability in the Middle East and beyond.
The conflict involved Israeli military strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities – including on Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow – the killing of Iranian nuclear scientists and top military brass, and attacks on ballistic missile factories. Israel’s attacks were followed by U.S. strikes meant to obliterate Iran’s nuclear weapon program. Pakistan, being a nuclear-armed state adjacent to Iran, interpreted the attacks in the context of its own security as these actions violated international norms on nuclear safety and security. The Israeli and U.S. military strikes risk the sanctity of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards and international nonproliferation norms.
Pakistan has a long history of cooperation with the IAEA over its peaceful nuclear program and adheres to international standards for the safety and security of its nuclear facilities. To avoid any nuclear misadventure in South Asia, in 1988 Pakistan and India signed a non-attack agreement that obligates both parties to refrain from actions aimed at “causing destruction or damage to nuclear installations or facilities in each country.” In South Asia, where crisis dynamics are volatile, any precedent that legitimizes or supports strikes on nuclear infrastructure increases security risks for Pakistan.
Thus Pakistan has taken a strong position diplomatically in support of Iran. Pakistan condemned Israel’s attacks as “unjustified and illegitimate aggression” and vowed to stand in solidarity with Iran. Pakistan also called upon the international community and the United Nations “to uphold international law, stop this aggression immediately and hold the aggressor accountable for its actions.”
In a joint statement with 20 foreign ministers of Islamic countries, Pakistan condemned the attacks and called for establishment of a Middle Eastern Nuclear Weapons Free Zone, projecting diplomacy as the only path forward while expressing its concerns on the targeting of nuclear facilities against established norms.
After the U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities, Pakistan called out the strikes for “violat[ing] all norms of international law” and emphasized that “Iran has the legitimate right to defend itself under the U.N. Charter.” Pakistan added that the “unprecedented escalation of tension and violence, owing to ongoing aggression against Iran, is deeply disturbing.”
In terms of immediate actions, Pakistan’s priority was to protect the lives of its citizens present in the Middle East. The authorities took the necessary steps to facilitate the urgent return of 268 Pakistani nationals from Iraq to ensure their safety and welfare.
The situation in the Middle East was especially concerning for Pakistan, as it could have a spillover effect on Pakistani soil. Islamabad shares a lengthy border with Iran via its southwestern province of Balochistan. The security situation in the province, which has a long history of insurgency, is strongly influenced with developments in Iran. Amid the conflict, Pakistan closed five entry points along the Iran-Pakistan border.
The convening of a National Security Committee (NSC) meeting showed Islamabad’s alarm over the regional security situation after the Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran. The meeting raised Pakistan’s concerns on the strikes and called for restraint and diplomacy to resolve issues.
Yet the tensions in the Middle East flared at a time when Pakistan is trying to rebuild its relations with the United States, the strongest ally of Israel. Pakistan thus navigated a tightrope, where it diplomatically took a strong position in condemning the attacks on Iran even as Pakistan’s chief of army staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir, visited the White House. Even as it decried the U.S. strikes on Iran, the government also nominated U.S. President Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize over his role in de-escalating the May crisis between India and Pakistan. One analyst explained the nomination as “a calculated effort to help de-escalate tensions and prevent a potential war,” arguing that it would not affect Pakistan’s steadfast support for Iran.
As far as the Iranian nuclear issue is concerned, Pakistan has always supported cooperation between the IAEA and Iran. Islamabad has shown deep interest in the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ever since Trump’s withdrawal from the agreement in 2018. As a nuclear weapon state cooperating closely with IAEA on nuclear safety and security in its peaceful uses, Pakistan has expressed concerns on the weakening of global nuclear security norms.
The erosion of global norms may increase the risk that hostile actors feel confident to replicate similar actions in South Asia – especially as the India-Israel nexus is also growing. As a stakeholder in global nuclear order, Pakistan cannot afford to remain silent on actions that threaten the credibility of international norms and institutions. It is therefore imperative for Pakistan that nonproliferation must be ensured through established institutions rather than states striking nuclear facilities in violation of IAEA safeguards.
Pakistan has so far maintained a strategic balance and ensured that its security interests are protected. It stood with international law, the U.N. charter and the IAEA while condemning the attacks on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure as violations of sovereignty and territorial integrity. Moving forward from this crisis, Pakistan must assert its role as a stabilizer and engage with multilateral platforms like the IAEA Board of Governors and the U.N. Conference on Disarmament for dialogue on strengthening protection of nuclear facilities during a crisis.
Pakistan must join the call for legally binding assurances that nuclear facilities must not be attacked in any context or circumstances. To that end, Pakistan should propose the provision of penalties on states that violate the established norms and target nuclear facilities, which can have severe human and environmental consequences.
