“Youm-e-Takbeer” will be observed tomorrow in remembrance of the nuclear tests conducted by Pakistan on May 28, 1998, which made the defence of the country invincible.

On this day, Pakistan became the seventh nuclear nation in the world and the first Muslim state to possess nuclear capability in its defence stockpile.

The team of Pakistan’s scientists, led by the founder of Pakistan’s nuclear programme Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan and Dr Samar Mubarakmand, carried out nuclear tests in the Ras Koh Hills in the Chagai district of Balochistan.

These tests not only demonstrated the resolve of the Pakistani nation to safeguard Pakistan’s territorial integrity, independence and sovereignty, but also the desire to preserve strategic balance in South Asia.

The historic statement of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto that they would starve, but transform the country into a nuclear power, led to the achievement of this milestone.

By resisting mounting external pressures, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Nawaz Sharif took the bold decision to conduct nuclear tests in response to Indian nuclear tests, thus restoring strategic balance in the region.

Pakistan is committed to the promotion of an environment of peace and stability in South Asia, while preserving its capability to deter aggression or adventurism in any form.