Technology
The nuclear sites of Pakistan are on display on the web. The credit goes to IKONOS, Internet and Federation of American Scientists (FAS). The FAS’s Public Eye project is acquiring imagery of nuclear and missile facilities around the world. The high-resolution images, acquired by the FAS from the Space Imaging IKONOS satellite, show details of Pakistan’s weapons facilities previously known only to the secret intelligence world.
According to the site, the imagery on the website (www.fas.org) covers two of Pakistan’s most important special weapons facilities, the plutonium production reactor at Khushab, and the nearby medium range missile base at Sargodha. Plutonium from the Khushab reactor would probably be used in light-weight nuclear warheads for the M-11 missiles at Sargodha, which Pakistan acquired from China in the early 1990s. The new satellite imagery indicates that construction of the Khushab reactor is essentially complete, and that Pakistan has built a dozen garages for mobile missile launchers and associated vehicles at Sargodha.
"Pakistan has laid the groundwork for a force of dozens of nuclear tipped missiles capable of striking Indian cities and military bases. But Pakistan is in danger of having most of its nuclear eggs in one basket, which would be a tempting target for a pre-emptive Indian attack in a time of crisis," according to John Pike, who directs the Federation’s Public Eye project.
The Implications
The combination of IKONOS with Internet is bound to change the security perceptions of not only South Asian region but of the entire world. The transparency in the defence activities of India and Pakistan may help in bringing peace or it fires back that are yet to be seen. John Pike says, "On balance, such satellite imagery improved the security of the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War; I think it has the same potential for India and Pakistan. "However, these revelations may tempt Pakistan to disperse the "eggs" it has put in one basket to pre-empt the pre-emptive attack. And India takes defensive measures after being alarmed on ‘nuclear tipped missiles’ takes defensive measures.
FAS plans to put the images of Indian nuclear sites on the web. The commercial availability of high-resolution satellite imageries will pose new security challenges. The deadly combination of Internet-IKONOS has created a situation where India needs to prepare herself to meet the emerging strategic requirements. Also, it has questioned the relevance of existing restrictions on maps in many parts of the world.