A senior White House official on Thursday highlighted growing concerns over Pakistan's development of long-range ballistic missile capabilities, warning that these advancements could eventually enable the country to target areas far beyond South Asia, including the United States.
Finer noted that Pakistan is pursuing increasingly advanced missile technology, including long-range ballistic missile systems and equipment designed for testing larger rocket motors. If these trends continue, he said, Pakistan could join the small group of nuclear-armed states with missile capabilities capable of reaching the U.S. homeland—currently limited to Russia, China, and North Korea.
“Candidly, it’s hard for us to see Pakistan’s actions as anything other than an emerging threat to the United States,” Finer said.
His comments coincided with Washington imposing fresh sanctions on Pakistan’s ballistic missile program, including measures targeting a state-run defense agency for the first time.
Historically, Pakistan’s nuclear weapons and missile programs have been framed as deterrents against India, with whom it has fought three wars since independence in 1947. However, U.S. officials are questioning whether Islamabad’s objectives are evolving.
Two senior administration officials, speaking anonymously, revealed that longstanding concerns over the size and power of Pakistan’s rocket engines remain unresolved. One official estimated the potential threat to the U.S. to be a decade away, while another emphasized Pakistan’s reluctance to address U.S. concerns, often dismissing them as biased or rooted in favoritism toward India.
“They don’t acknowledge our concerns and imply that our sanctions are designed to handicap their defense capabilities against India,” the second official said.
Finer’s comments also spotlighted the strained relationship between Washington and Islamabad. He questioned Pakistan’s motivation for developing capabilities that could potentially target the United States, particularly given the nations’ history of cooperation in development, counter-terrorism, and security.
“Pakistan’s decisions make us question even more why they are motivated to develop a capability that could be used against us,” Finer said.
Pakistan has grown increasingly critical of U.S. overtures to India, its regional rival, and maintains close ties with China. Notably, U.S. sanctions have also targeted Chinese entities accused of supplying Islamabad’s ballistic missile program.
The U.S.-Pakistan relationship has seen both collaboration and contention over the decades. During the Cold War, Pakistan was a key ally in supporting Afghan rebels against the Soviet Union. Post-9/11, it became a critical partner in the fight against al Qaeda and was designated a major non-NATO ally in 2004.
However, ties have been strained by Pakistan’s military coups, its support for the Taliban’s early rule, and its nuclear weapons development. Pakistan conducted its first nuclear test in 1998, following India’s lead, and is estimated to have a stockpile of around 170 nuclear warheads, according to the Bulletin of the American Scientists.
Finer’s remarks have drawn widespread attention for their unprecedented nature. Michael Kugelman of the Wilson Center described them as a “dramatic development,” noting that publicly linking Pakistan’s missile program to a direct future threat to the U.S. homeland marks a significant escalation in rhetoric.
As the U.S. monitors Pakistan’s missile advancements, this development underscores the complex and evolving nature of regional and global security dynamics.
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