TEHRAN - Reaffirming his country’s commitment to non-proliferation, Pakistan’s newly-elected president Arif Alvi has said that Pakistan will not join the nuclear race, as nuclear weapons are for defense only.

Addressing an international conference on Global Non Proliferation Regime: Challenges and Response on Monday in Islamabad, Alvi said Pakistan was committed to maintaining strategic stability and peace in the region.

Pakistan is committed to maintaining strategic stability and peace in the region and will continue to demonstrate restraint and responsibility, he said. Nobody should doubt Pakistan’s ability to defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty.

Alvi said that after the Cold War, there is an ongoing race of nuclear weaponry. There should be international laws on the use of nuclear weapons, he said. Pakistan wants peaceful relations with all countries in the region.

He also called for the resolution of ongoing disputes in Indian-controlled-Kashmir, saying that the United Nations should play its role in resolving the problem.

Pakistan, a nuclear-armed country, is not the signatory of Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Pakistan maintains that it will not sign the treaty as long as India does not, saying it is willing to abandon its position on NPT in case India joins it.

The Treaty was conceived with an objective to prevent nuclear proliferation, work towards full disarmament and promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology. The non-nuclear members states of NPT had agreed not to acquire nuclear weapons and the nuclear member states had pledged to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology.