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Pakistan, one of the only 8 nations to possess the deadly nuclear power, which acts as a deterrent in the world, to upwith keep sovereignty and a free hand on practicing the country’s rights and wrongs, is a huge accomplishment for the nation.
Pakistan, along with India and 6 other big nations of the world, have the power of creating weapons of mass destruction through nuclear power. Some might say that both countries escalated their issues and brought themselves to a point where they needed nuclear power for their ‘safety’, but this move has helped Pakistan more than India, considering the number of enemies our country has.
Twenty years ago, today, on 28th May 1998, the day us Pakistanis proudly call ‘Youm-e-Takbeer’ is the day when 5 nuclear tests were successfully carried out in Balochistan’s Raskoh, Chaghi mountains. It was a Thursday and the time was exactly 3:15pm. Although the orders of the nuclear test were carried out by Nawaz Sharif, who took most of the credit for Pakistan’s nuclear ability, the real men behind the job weren’t politicians.
Everybody knows, it was Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan who developed the technology, and brought Pakistan extremely close to being a nuclear power. It was his dedication, diligence, hard work and love for the country which saw him making Pakistan a nuclear nation his life’s mission. However, a lot of controversies saw him lose the status he once had, right after making Pakistan a nuclear power.
It is pertinent to add here that the key power behind making Pakistan a nuclear nation was neither Nawaz Sharif, nor the very talented AQ Khan, but it was the establishment of the country, the Army, who knew that for this country’s survival, it would have to resort to primitive ways, where the only deterrent to a fight was to show how powerful you are.
Thus, day and night, rigorously, the key force worked its way into developing the technology, finding talented people like Dr. AQ Khan and many others who did not make it to the big stage. Since 1998, the arsenal and all other nuclear based weaponry of the country rests with the Pakistan Army, who have taken care of the depots and other facilities, guarding them with their lives.
Imagine, if after 9/11, Pakistan did not have nuclear technology and would go through everything it previously did. How would we have countered powers like the United States and its tout, India? Our biggest strength is our nuclear arsenal, and we thank Dr. AQ Khan and Pakistan Army for bringing us to a point, where we are one of the most power 8 countries of the world.
