China tested Pakistan's first N-bomb during Benazir's tenure: ex-US official

Washington, Jan .3(ANI): In a startling revelation made by a former US official, it has emerged that China tested Pakistan's first nuclear bomb in 1990.

Thomas Reed, a former US Air Force secretary has claimed in his book- The Nuclear Express: A Political History of the Bomb and Its Proliferation that during Benazir Bhutto's tenure China helped Pakistan in testing its first nuclear armament.

"We believe that during Benazir Bhutto's term in office, the People's Republic of China tested Pakistan's first bomb for her in 1990.There are numerous reasons why we believe this to be true, including the design of the weapon and information gathered from discussions with Chinese nuclear experts," the Dawn quoted Reed, as saying.

Reed also claimed that it took Pakistan little time to respond to the nuclear test carried out by India in May 1998 because the Chinese had already prepared them for a response.

"It only took them two weeks and three days," he said.

Reed noted that China gave full-fledged training to the Pakistani scientists regarding the nuclear techniques.

"Chinese did a massive training of Pakistani scientists, brought them to China for lectures, even gave them the design of the CHIC-4 device, which was a weapon that was easy to build a model for export," he said.

Chinese nuclear support to Pakistan is not new as it was evident in the 2001 US Department of Defence report that China had supplied Pakistan with nuclear materials and expertise and had also provided critical assistance in the construction of Pakistan's nuclear facilities.

China helped Pakistan at the time when there was a stringent export controls in western countries, and was difficult for Pakistan to acquire materials and technology elsewhere.

China has always assisted Pakistan with warfares as it considers Pakistan an important ally against India.

The Chinese assistance to Pakistan can be explained by a balance of power: India is China's enemy and Pakistan is India's enemy," Reed added. (ANI)