India, Pakistan exchange annual list of nuclear installations

New Delhi: Maintaining a practice in place for more than three decades, India and Pakistan on Thursday exchanged lists of their nuclear installations under a bilateral agreement that bars both sides from attacking each other’s atomic facilities.

The annual exchange took place despite relations between the two neighbours remaining strained following four days of military hostilities in May last year.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the lists were shared under the agreement on the prohibition of attacks against nuclear installations and facilities. The exchange was carried out simultaneously through diplomatic channels in New Delhi and Islamabad.

“India and Pakistan today exchanged, through diplomatic channels, simultaneously at New Delhi and Islamabad, the list of nuclear installations and facilities covered under the agreement,” the MEA said.

The agreement was signed on December 31, 1988, and came into force on January 27, 1991. It requires both countries to share details of nuclear installations and facilities covered under the pact on January 1 every year.

“This marks the 35th consecutive exchange of such lists, with the first exchange having taken place on January 1, 1992,” the MEA added.