Pakistan and nuclear weapons (catch all)

[flagg]

What of the possibility of Pakistani Army/ISI ambition to retain political/economic/military power and relevancy by leasing an IRBM Regiment's worth of nuclear warheads to Saudi Arabia once Iran goes nuclear?

With the US leaving Afghanistan and Pakistan losing leverage to extort logistical occupation tax/royalties from the US, and thus the ability for the US to seek closer alignment with India, I would think Pakistan's behavior in the future could mimic GCC behavior.

Which means less "by, with, thru" and more "around, without, and in spite of".

As I understand it, Pakistan has earned mercenary income from the Saudi state via many Pakistani military working on behalf of the Saudi state and that maybe Saudi played a role in funding Pakistan's nuclear program(directly or indirectly).

I would think a closer Saudi/Pakistani partnership, with a possible nuclear angle, quietly backed by China is more than just a possibility?

Pakistan's Army/ISI stay geopolitically relevant and solvent.

Saudi regime continuity is better insured.

Or do I need to take some crazy pills?

[omarali50]

I wrote this in more optimistic times, but it may still have some relevance(when i get some time, I hope to do a follow up):

http://www.3quarksdaily.com/3quarksd...-omar-ali.html

Last paras:

So much for the optimistic version. Since this is a post about Pakistan, it cannot end without some pessimism. The most dangerous element in Pakistan today is not the Islamist fanatics. It is the rise of China. Not because the rise of China threatens Pakistan or because Chinese hyper-capitalism or cheap Chinese products threaten our industry or our social peace or any such thing, but because it may inflate the egos of the military high command to the point that they lose contact with reality and try a high jump for which we are not yet ready (and may never be ready). It’s not that the high jump will get anywhere, but that the attempt may lead us into more trouble than we can handle.

I say this because GHQ, for all its pragmatic pretensions, has been known to overestimate their skill and underestimate their opponents. If China was not truly a rising power, and if Pakistan did not have some real assets and advantages, we might have been safer in the long run. But since there is an element of truth in the paknationalists notions about China and the changing global balance of power, they may lose their balance. All I am saying is GHQ is prone to flying off on a self-generated hot air pocket even when the situation does not encourage such optimism. When the situation actually has some positive aspects, there may be no restraining them. But, I remain an optimist. I think our own weaknesses may protect us from the fate of a much stronger and more capable country (Germany in 1940).
- See more at: http://www.3quarksdaily.com/3quarksd....rnWXbnRj.dpuf