Our position is clear, we have never supported Pakistan's ballistic missile program, Vedant Patel

 There are serious concerns about Pakistan's long-range ballistic missile program, and the refusal to support the long-range ballistic missile program is a long-standing policy, said the press briefing of the US State Department's deputy spokesperson.

Friday, December 20, 2024

Washington (UrduPoint News - 20 December 2024) The US says it has serious concerns over Pakistan’s long-range ballistic missile program. The US State Department’s statement on Pakistan’s ballistic missile program and new US sanctions has come to light. Refusing to support the long-range ballistic missile program is a long-standing policy. Giving a press briefing in Washington, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said that our position is clear. We have never supported Pakistan’s ballistic missile program.

The US is committed to maintaining the global non-proliferation regime, but Pakistan is an important partner of the US. Vedant Patel added that the US will maintain the global non-proliferation regime.

In response to a question about sanctions on Pakistani institutions, Vedant Patel said that the US is committed to global non-proliferation.

The US is an important partner of Pakistan. There are concerns about Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. The US has long had concerns about Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. It is a policy not to support a long-range ballistic missile program. The sanctions are based on our concerns about the ballistic missile program.

The US State Department will continue to use sanctions and other tools for national security. The US will continue to engage with Pakistan on these issues. The sanctions will not affect Pak-US relations in other areas. It should be noted that yesterday, the US imposed additional sanctions on four entities linked to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. During a press briefing in Washington, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that the US was designating four Pakistani entities for these sanctions.

These companies included National Development Complex, Affiliates International, Akhtar & Sons Private Limited, and Rockside Enterprise. All of these companies allegedly provided missiles and missile-related equipment for Pakistan’s missile program. According to media reports, the US State Department had said that the US move was against weapons of mass destruction.

The companies had facilitated the acquisition of equipment for the missile program and would be targeted for proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or their means of delivery. They said that this assistance included the manufacture of specialized vehicle chassis that were used to launch ballistic missiles. In addition, three Karachi-based entities were also identified.

The United States will continue to take action against proliferation and related procurement activities. All of these entities were accused of materially contributing to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or of having the potential to contribute to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The sanctions were imposed under Executive Order (EO) 13382, which targeted weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems. The announcement added that Pakistan’s National Development Complex, which was responsible for Pakistan’s ballistic missile program, was also targeted because the National Development Complex had acquired items to advance the missile program.