Pak made ‘counterproductive’ moves risking nuke war: Biden

TIL Desk/World/Washington-United States Vice President Joe Biden has singled out Pakistan along with Russia and North Korea and others for making ‘counterproductive’ moves that only heightened the risk that nuclear weapons could be used in a regional conflict. “Not just North Korea, but Russia, Pakistan, and others have made counterproductive moves that only increase the risk that nuclear weapons could be used in a regional conflict in Europe, South Asia, or East Asia,” Biden said in his remarks on nuclear security.

Working with the Congress, the next administration will have to navigate these dangers and continue leading the global consensus to reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our world, Biden said a week before the end of eight years of the Obama administration. “We know that terrorists have both the capacity and the goal of transforming nuclear materials into weapons to sow havoc. And we know that no nation acting alone can defeat this threat,” he said.

Biden said as North Koreas nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities continue to expand, it poses a growing threat to international security and our own national defense. “Just last year, in response to two illegal nuclear tests by North Korea, the United Nations Security Council — including China and Russia — unanimously adopted two resolutions imposing the most far-reaching and comprehensive sanctions on North Korea to date,” he said and called for enforcing these sanctions to ensure North Korea understands that we will continue to impose costs for their illegal behaviour.