Does Pakistan Still Have Nuclear Weapons

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Has the United States really entered into a war against Iran? Does one strike mean an all out war? Or two strikes? The US did take out Qassim Soleimani - after American soldiers were targetted and killed in Iraq. It was a strike but not a war. The US and Iran have been at an undeclared war ever since the Iranians seized the US Embassy in Teheran in 1979 and held hundreds of Americans hostage.
The Ayatollahs should have just stayed at home. They have a 100 million people in Iran. To satisfy their cravings they could have killed one Mahsa Amini a week for ever. They would still have their country. But they kept poking their noses into other countries. Now in less than one week  they have brought utter destruction upon their heads. The Ayatollah Khamenei has gone completely underground for 11 days now and he has not seen sunlight since then. And no one know his exact whereabouts. Or if he is in the country?
Last week (Wednesday 18 June 2025) President Donald Trump hosted Asim Munir the Pakistani Army Chief to a two-hour lunch at the White House.


It was a closed door event and no press was allowed before or after the lunch. Also in attendance were US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and likely US Vice President JD Vance. 

That lunch meeting was the first time a U.S. president had hosted the head of Pakistan's army, widely regarded as the most powerful figure in the country, at the White House unaccompanied by any senior Pakistani civilian officials.   The lunch was a major slap in the face for the Pakistani Government because the Pakistani prime minister was not invited and neither was there any Cabinet representative. It reflects the reality that in Pakistan the Army is the real power - and not the government. 
It also proves the point that Pakistan is still a puppet of the United States of America. The US has serious clout over Pakistan. If the US President calls the Pakistani Army Chief he shows up on the double.   Yes Sir, no Sir. Very good Sir.
In return the Pakistani Army Chief said that his country would nominate President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the recent Indo-Pak kerfuffle.  

Despite the white man having colonised them for centuries some of these folks in south Asia have the view that the white man was born yesterday. A Nobel Prize nomination (where Pakistan has as much clout as Malaysia) would flatter Donald Trump. 
There is much speculation about what really transpired at the lunch. 

The lunch took place on Wednesday 18th June, four days before the American attack against Iran on Sunday 22nd June 2025 (try looking for an exact date for an event in any of the world's newspapers, they just dont know how to write).
It is possible that the Americans were prepping up the Pakistanis for some future role in back channel negotiations with Iran.   
Surprisingly Pakistan, a Sunni country, has links to Shia Iran with whom Pakistan shares a 900 km border. And a section of Pakistan's embassy in Washington represents Iran's interests in the United States, as Tehran does not have diplomatic relations with the U.S.
This could be one of the reasons for Trump hosting the Pakistani Army Chief.
There are also other things going on in Pakistan. The Indian attack against Pakistan has seriously crippled much of Pakistan's airbases. Including their nuclear weapons stockpiles (kept at or close to some of these bases).
During peacetime nuclear weapons are rarely stored in one piece. In peacetime the warheads are removed from the delivery vehicles (like missiles) and stored elsewhere. The warheads themselves can be further dismantled.
During peacetime, key components of nuclear warheads, like the fissile material (plutonium pit), are often stored separately from the non-nuclear components (high explosives, etc.). This approach balances readiness for potential use with efforts to enhance safety and security.
Understandably the plutonium, uranium core etc will be kept in the safest underground storage. The other detonators, the "explosives lens" etc may be kept in other places. Without all these components put together the nuclear weapon will not work.  It also means that if an airstrike (like what the Indians did recently in Pakistan) hits any of the component parts then the nuclear weapon cannot be put together.
Although it is not fully clear, something like this may have happened to Pakistan. Indian sources say that since the Indian airstrikes US Special Forces have completely taken over some of these Pakistani airbases that were hit by the Indians. US forces are strictly controlling access into and out of those Pakistani air bases.  
And from the day after the Indian attacks, many US Air Force flights (large military transports) have been seen landing and taking off from Pakistan. When they leave the American transport aircraft are taking out crates and boxes of dont-know-what. It is anybody's guess but speculation rests on some of those damaged nuclear components. 
Logically nuclear weapons are designed for one time use only. I doubt there are  manuals for the service and repair of damaged nuclear warheads. Or the Americans may have more expertise in this area.
Bottomline is the Pakistani nuclear arsenal may have been damaged - quite seriously.  And the Americans are helping the Pakistanis sort things out. Of course at some cost.
Yes Sir.No Sir. Very good Sir. The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.
By Syed Akbar Ali 

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