Pakistan rejects US intelligence chief’s claims about missile threat

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Thursday strongly rejected comments by the United States Director of National Intelligence suggesting the country’s missile capabilities could pose a threat beyond South Asia.

In a statement, Foreign Office spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi said Islamabad “categorically rejects” the assertion, stressing that Pakistan’s strategic weapons are defensive in nature and part of a doctrine of credible minimum deterrence aimed at safeguarding national sovereignty and regional stability.

“The missile programme … remains well below intercontinental range,” Andrabi said, adding that it was designed to address security concerns in South Asia, particularly from neighbouring India, not to target distant countries.

The remarks came after US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard, in testimony before a Senate committee, included Pakistan in a list of countries developing advanced missile systems and suggested their long-range capabilities could evolve to reach the United States. Analysts and Pakistani officials have pushed back, saying the US concerns over Pakistan’s missiles are misplaced and focused disproportionately on Islamabad rather than other regional powers.

Pakistan reiterated its commitment to continued dialogue with the United States on security issues, urging a measured approach grounded in mutual respect and factual accuracy.