Pakistan, which initially developed nuclear weapons to counter India, later changed its ambitions to build an "Islamic bomb" and transfer technology to other Muslim countries like Iran, claimed Richard Barlow, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer.
"Pakistan's primary motive for developing nuclear weapons was to counter India. But it was also very clear from AQ Khan and the generals' perspective that it was not just the Pakistani bomb; it was the Islamic bomb -- the Muslim bomb," Barlow added.
#WATCH | On the reported Israel-India proposal for a preemptive strike on Pakistan’s Kahuta nuclear facility, Former CIA Officer Richard Barlow says, "It never happened, it was just talk. It is a shame that Indira (former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi) did not approve… pic.twitter.com/5M0C8cfRAM
— ANI (@ANI) November 7, 2025
He said if Indira Gandhi had approved a plan to attack Pakistan's nuclear facilities, a lot of problems would have been solved today. “It never happened, it was just talk. It is a shame that Indira (former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi) did not approve it. It would have solved a lot of problems," Barlow told ANI’s Ishaan Prakash.
However, a potential attack by India would have infuriated the US administration led by Ronald Reagan, he said. "It would have interfered with the Afghan problem because… they (Pakistan) were basically using the flow of covert aid to the Mujahideen as blackmail. I think that’s what (Pakistan Army Chief Asim) Munir was saying."
Barlow, who served as counter proliferation officer during Pakistan's covert nuclear programme in the 1980s, said Reagan maintained that Islamabad did not have nuclear weapons despite reservations by intelligence officers. He alleged that US administrations "did nothing" about Pakistan's nuclear activities for more than 20 years.
This comes days after US President Donald Trump said Pakistan continues to carry underground nuclear trials while the US has refrained from testing for more than three decades.
However, Pakistan denied that they have been testing nuclear weapons, claiming that it "was not the first to carry out nuclear tests and will not be the first to resume them."
The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday lashed out at Pakistan's secret nuclear activities, saying the country's nuclear history is centred around "decades of smuggling, export control violations, secret partnerships, AQ Khan network and further proliferation."
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India has always drawn the attention of the global community to Pakistan's illegal nuclear weapons testing. "In this backdrop, we have taken note of President Trump’s comment about Pakistan’s nuclear testing," he said.
