Pakistan has, again, dealt a nasty blow to prospects for nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament – this time by blocking the start of talks on a global treaty to ban the production of fissile material. So much for the optimism held by many, including some of us at The Interpreter.
Islamabad has been capable of all sorts of short-sighted folly in its foreign and security policies over the years. This one is daft, not least because it provides rival India with the perfect cover for its own reluctance to see a fissile material cut-off treaty negotiated. Now there will be no way in the near-term of testing India's good faith on this issue.