WASHINGTON, Nov 11: The United States has developed contingency plans to safeguard Pakistani nuclear assets if the current political turmoil allows extremists to get hold of the weapons, The Washington Post reported on Sunday.

The report, however, also points out that US officials have limited knowledge about the location of the arsenal, which could pose a problem. US officials, when contacted by Dawn, said they did not comment on media reports based on intelligence sources.

“We can’t say with absolute certainty that we know where they all are,” the newspaper quotes an unnamed former US official as saying. If an attempt were made by the United States to seize the weapons to prevent their loss, “it could be very messy,” the official said.

He would not discuss details of the plans, but several former officials told the Post the plans envisioned efforts to remove a nuclear weapon at imminent risk of falling into terrorists’ hands.

The plans imagine, in the best case, that Pakistani military officials will help the Americans eliminate that threat, according to the report. Former and current administration officials, however, say they believe that Pakistan’s stockpile is safe, the paper said.