Washington/Islamabad, June 25: In a development raising strategic alarms in Washington, Pakistan is reportedly working on a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that could potentially reach the United States, according to a recent report published by Foreign Affairs.
Citing unnamed U.S. officials, the report suggests that if Pakistan succeeds in building or acquiring such a missile, it would be classified by the United States as a nuclear adversary—placing it in the same league as Russia, China, and North Korea.
This revelation follows the Indian military’s Operation Sindoor, launched last month, which has reportedly pushed Islamabad to accelerate efforts to upgrade its nuclear arsenal—possibly with technical assistance from China.
While Pakistan’s official position has long emphasized a deterrent posture aimed solely at India, the alleged move to develop ICBM capability marks a major doctrinal shift. ICBMs are missiles with a range exceeding 5,500 kilometers, capable of delivering nuclear warheads across continents. So far, Pakistan’s longest-range tested missile remains the Shaheen-III, with a reach of approximately 2,750 kilometers.
According to the report, Pakistan’s strategic community may be seeking to create a “deterrence umbrella” against the United States, particularly in light of Washington’s past actions, such as airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. An ICBM, analysts believe, could serve as a political tool to prevent American intervention in any future India-Pakistan conflict.
“The United States does not regard any nation possessing ICBMs capable of striking its mainland as a friend,” a U.S. official was quoted as saying in the report.
In response to its concerns, Washington had imposed sanctions last year on Pakistan’s National Development Complex and three associated entities, citing involvement in long-range missile development. The sanctions froze U.S.-linked assets and banned American firms from engaging in business with the blacklisted organizations—a move Islamabad dismissed as “biased and politically motivated.”
Both India and Pakistan remain outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) framework, which seeks to curb the spread of nuclear weapons globally.
If confirmed, Pakistan’s ICBM development would mark a significant shift in South Asia’s nuclear landscape, adding a new dimension to an already fragile regional balance and escalating anxieties in Washington about proliferation risks.