Islamabad, 22 November 2021 (TDI): Indian accusations regarding the interception of a potentially radioactive consignment on board a vessel leaving Karachi were dismissed on Saturday, with the Foreign Office clarifying that it included empty containers that had previously been used to export fuel for the K-2 and K-3 Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs).
In a statement, Foreign Office spokesman Asim Iftikhar stated, “The reporting by the Indian media about seizure of possible radioactive material is factually incorrect, baseless, laughable and a usual ploy of the Indian media to malign Pakistan and mislead the international community”.
A joint Customs and DRI team seized several containers at Mundra Port from a foreign vessel on concerns that they contained undeclared hazardous cargo”, said Adani Ports, which runs Mundra Port, where Indian authorities offloaded several containers from a Shanghai-bound vessel on Thursday.
Although the seized containers purportedly featured Hazard Class 7 labels suggesting radioactive chemicals, the Indian company claimed the consignment was designated as non-hazardous in the papers. As a result, the cargo was offloaded for further inspection, according to the report.
Although the seized containers purportedly featured Hazard Class 7 labels suggesting radioactive chemicals, the Indian company claimed the consignment was designated as non-hazardous in the papers. As a result, the cargo was offloaded for further inspection, according to the report.
The Karachi Nuclear Power Plant officials had notified the Foreign Office spokesperson that the offloaded cargo comprised ’empty containers’ being returned to China and that they had previously been used for the transit of fuel from China to Karachi for the K-2 and K-3 NPPs, according to the Foreign Office spokesman.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has safeguarded both the K-2 and K-3 nuclear power reactors, as well as the fuel utilised in them, according to the spokesman. Since March 2017, they have been under IAEA safeguards.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) uses safeguards to ensure that nuclear facilities are not misused and nuclear material is not diverted from peaceful applications.
According to Pakistani officials, the country’s commitment to IAEA safeguards is evidenced by the fact that all of its nuclear power plants and research reactors are subject to IAEA safeguards without exception, and that these safeguards were maintained even during the Covid-19 outbreak.
The cargo was correctly reported as non-hazardous because the containers were empty, the spokesman added, rejecting the claim of incorrect cargo declaration in documents.
“The fake reporting by Indian media is indicative of a mala fide intent to twist procedural customs issues to bring into disrepute IAEA safeguarded nuclear power programme,” he added.
