'US seeking control over Pak nukes'


The Bush administration is struggling to gain control over Pakistan's nuclear facilities, new media reports have suggested.

In the latest move, Washington sought direct access to Pakistan's Nuclear Command Authority by assigning an officer at the US embassy in Islamabad to liaise with the body that controls the country's nuclear weapons.

The demand, first reported in the Pakistani newspapers Jang and News.

Last month, Washington issued a set of 11 demands that shocked Pakistan's security establishment, which described it as highly intrusive and untenable.

The demands included allowing US personnel to enter Pakistan on the basis of national identity (like driver's license) and forgoing visas; etc, The Times of India reported.

Pakistan's Defense Ministry, the Foreign Office and the Law Ministry were reported to have rejected the demands outright.

Elizabeth Colton, the US embassy spokesperson in Islamabad, did not deny the report but told reporters: "We are in touch with all elements of the Pakistani government all the time. But we do not publish or discuss details of our diplomatic discussions and assignments."

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