Location oF Pakistan Nuclear US Doesnt Know

Tuesday, May 19, 2009 at 10:25 am

LOS ANGELES: CIA director Leon Panetta said US intelligence officials did not know the exact whereabouts of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons but believed they were safe from the Taliban.

Speaking in Los Angeles, the Central Intelligence Agency chief said Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal was “pretty secure” amid concerns that the weapons could possibly fall into the hands of Taliban insurgents.

“We don’t have frankly the intelligence to know where they are all located but we do track the Pakistanis,” Panetta said when asked if the US knew where Pakistan’s nuclear weapons were located.

“Right now we are confident that the Pakistanis do have a pretty secure approach to trying to protect these weapons. But it is something that we continue to watch because obviously the last thing we want is for the Taliban to have access to nuclear weapons in Pakistan.”

Panetta told the gathering organized by the Pacific Council on International Policy in Los Angeles.