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Aug 4th, 2011


U.S. Prepares for Worst-Case Scenario with Pakistan Nukes


A medium range ballistic missile Hatf V (Ghauri) missile takes off during a test fire from an undisclosed location in Pakistan on Dec. 21, 2010 in this photo distributed by the Pakistani military. The liquid-fuel missile can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads and has a range of more than 800 miles. (Photo credit: Ispr / EPA)

By Robert Windrem
Investigative Producer for Special Projects

July 28, 2011

As U.S.-Pakistani relations spiral downward, the specter of a showdown between the increasingly antagonistic allies is garnering more attention, including the worst-case scenario of the U.S. attempting to “snatch” Pakistan’s 100-plus nuclear weapons if it feared they were about to fall into the wrong hands. …

It’s no secret that the United States has a plan to try to grab Pakistan’s nuclear weapons — if and when the president believes they are a threat to either the U.S. or U.S. interests. Among the scenarios seen as most likely: Pakistan plunging into internal chaos, terrorists mounting a serious attack against a nuclear facility, hostilities breaking out with India or Islamic extremists taking charge of the government or the Pakistan army. …

Read the full story at MSNBC Open Channel

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Related reports on this site

Image: Pakistani Islamist party Jamat-e-Islami protests
Supporters of the Pakistani Islamist party Jamat-e-Islami protest U.S. drone attacks in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2009. (Photo credit: Athar Hussain / Reuters)

Pakistan U.S. Supply Line Threat (May 14, 2011)

CIA ‘Spy’ Jailed in Pakistan (Feb. 21, 2011)

Anti-American Backlash in Pakistan (Jan. 30, 2011)

WikiLeaks: U.S. Security Threats (Nov. 28, 2010)

Obama Missile Strikes Continue (Oct. 15, 2010)

U.S. Missile Strikes in Pakistan (Oct. 8, 2010)

Simmering U.S.-Pakistan Tension (Oct. 4, 2010)

Pakistan Shuts U.S. Supply Line (Sept. 30, 2010)

U.S. Missile Barrage in Pakistan (Sept. 9, 2010)

Pakistan’s Taliban ‘Double Game’ (June 13, 2010)

U.S. Special Forces Killed in Pakistan (Feb. 4, 2010)

War on Terror Pakistan Blowback (Oct. 30, 2009)

Pakistanis Protest U.S. Airstrikes (Jan. 27, 2009)

U.S., Pakistan Exchange Fire (Sept. 26, 2008)

U.S. Drone Down in Pakistan (Sept. 24, 2008)

U.S. Denies Pakistan Incursion (Sept. 22, 2008)

Pakistan: We’ll Kill U.S. Troops (Sept. 17, 2008)

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FROM THE ARCHIVES

One Year Ago — August 4, 2010

Support for Afghan War Plummets

One year ago today, I reported that public support for President Obama’s Afghanistan war policy had plummeted amid a rising U.S. death toll, according to a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, which also showed Obama’s handling of the war in Iraq at record-low approval.

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Two Years Ago — August 4, 2009

Iraq-Afghanistan Casualties

Two years ago today, on August 4, 2009, I provided my weekly report of U.S. military deaths in the Iraqi and Afghanistan wars.

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Three Years Ago — August 4, 2008

Campaign Against Michele Bachmann: Day 21

Three years ago today, on August 4, 2008 — the 21st day of my 2008 campaign against incumbent U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District — I featured a candidate profile by St. Paul Pioneer Press reporter Dennis Lien, titled “Bachmann encounters challenger from within.” I also posted a public service announcement to help draw attention to the sacrifice of National Guard citizen soldiers serving in Iraq and the families they leave behind.





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