Biased Sanctions: Pakistan slams U.S., ramps up defense dialogue with China
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Pakistan accused the U.S. administration on Saturday of initiating moves against it, calling them “biased and politically motivated.”
A spokeswoman for the Foreign Office was asked about the U.S. decision to apply sanctions against commercial firms over claims of links to Pakistan’s ballistic missile development.
She responded, “Pakistan views this action as unfair and politically motivated. Similar listings of commercial entities in the past were based solely on suspicion; they contained commodities not specified under any export control regime but were considered sensitive under broad, catch-all clauses.”
On Thursday, the U.S. State Department announced sanctions on a Chinese research facility and numerous companies accused of assisting Pakistan’s ballistic missile development.
It is not the first time the United States has implemented such sanctions.
The spokeswoman stated that it is commonly known that some governments while claiming strict commitment to nonproliferation principles, have readily bypassed licensing requirements for advanced military technologies for their preferred states.
“Such double standards and discriminatory practices undermine the credibility of global nonproliferation regimes, increase military asymmetries, and endanger international peace and security,” she said.
Meanwhile, Sun Xiaobo, Chinese Director General (Department of Arms Control), visited Pakistani Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch on Saturday, highlighting the favorable trajectory of bilateral relations.
“They emphasized the importance of regular exchanges and consultations on arms control and nonproliferation as an important component of the Pakistan-China Strategic Dialogue,” the Foreign Office stated following the meeting.
Pakistan and China will hold their 10th round of bilateral consultations on arms control and nonproliferation in Beijing next year.