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Pakistan moves nuke arsenal to secret location: Report

Senior Pakistan military officials speaking to The Washington Post said President Pervez Musharraf has ordered the country's nuclear arsenal be relocated to at least six secret locations.

The report also said Musharraf revamped the nuclear forces structure, immediately after Pakistan agreed to become the frontline state in the US war against terrorism.

Quoting some unnamed officials, the Post report said critical components were hastily moved within two days of the September 11 terrorist attack to secret locations.

But, some other officials contended the components were removed from only those airbases that were earmarked for use by US forces.

The report said Musharraf, in a quick reorganisation of the nuclear chain of command, created a new strategic planning division headed by a three-star general.

This reorganisation was part of the military reshuffle, which took place following Pakistan's decision to extend support to the US-led campaign against Afghanistan, but wasn't disclosed.

Security concerns and the possibility of the nuclear arsenal falling into the hands of religious extremists apparently prompted the move to reorganise the nuclear command chain.

Intelligence reports and nuclear experts predict that Pakistan has fissile material to assemble between 30 and 40 warheads.

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