'Unjustified seizure': Islamabad registers protest against India's seizure of Pak bound ship carrying military grade equipment

‘Unjustified seizure’: Islamabad registers protest against India’s seizure of Pak bound ship carrying military grade equipment

NEW DELHI: Islamabad registered its protest on Sunday after Indian security agencies intercepted and seized the consignment of a Karachi-bound ship at Mumbai’s Nhava Sheva port over suspicions that it contained ‘dual-use consignment’ that could be used by Islamabad in its nuclear and ballistics missile programme.

Claiming it to be an “unjustified seizure”, Pakistan’ foreign ministry said that the consignment was a simple case of import of a commercial lathe machine by a commercial entity which supplies parts to the automobile industry in this country.

In response to media questions regarding the seizure of commercial equipment destined for Pakistan, the foreign office spokesperson said that these reports are reflective of Indian media’s “misrepresentation of facts”.

“Specifications of the equipment clearly indicate its purely commercial use. The transaction was being conducted through transparent banking channels with all the relevant documentation,” the spokesperson said.

“Pakistan condemns India’s high-handedness in seizure of commercial goods. This disruption of free trade underscores the dangers inherent in arbitrary assumption of policing roles by states with dubious credentials. Such acts also highlight the growing impunity of certain states in violating international norms and taking arbitrary measures in violation of international law,” the spokesperson further added.

The relevant private entities are pursuing the matter against this “unjustified seizure,” the spokesperson added.

On January 23, acting on intelligence inputs, customs officials halted the Matla-flagged merchant ship, CMA CGM Atilla , enroute to Karachi. During the inspection, the officials found a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machine, manufactured by an Italian company, known for its precision and efficiency controlled by a computer system.

CNC machines are basically controlled by a computer and produce a scale of efficiency, consistency and accuracy not possible manually. Since 1996, CNC machines have been included in the Wassenaar Arrangement — an international arms control regime aimed at stopping the proliferation of equipment with both civilian and military uses. India is among the 42 member countries that exchange information on transfers of conventional weapons and dual-use goods and technologies.

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