India and Pakistan on 1 January exchanged a list of their nuclear installations under a bilateral pact that prohibits the two sides from attacking each other’s nuclear facilities. The practice has continued for three decades in the beginning of new year.
The exchange of the list came even as the ties between the two countries remain under deep freeze following four-day military hostilities last May in the aftermath of Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 civilians were killed.
The list exchange took place under the provisions of an agreement on the prohibition of attack against nuclear installations and facilities, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. It was done simultaneously through diplomatic channels in New Delhi and Islamabad.
“India and Pakistan today exchanged, through diplomatic channels, simultaneously at New Delhi and Islamabad, the list of nuclear installations and facilities, covered under the agreement on the prohibition of attack against nuclear installations and facilities between India and Pakistan,” the MEA said.
The agreement was signed on December 31, 1988, and came into force on January 27 1991.
The pact mandates the two countries to inform each other of nuclear installations and facilities to be covered under the agreement on the first of January of every calendar year.
“This is the 35th consecutive exchange of such lists between the two countries, the first one having taken place on 1 January 1992,” the MEA said in a brief statement.
Prisoner Exchange too
The two countries also exchanged, through diplomatic channels, simultaneously in New Delhi and Islamabad, the lists of civil prisoners and fishermen in each other’s custody, under the provisions of the bilateral Agreement on Consular Access 2008.
India has shared lists with details of 391 civil prisoners and 33 fishermen in its custody, who are Pakistani or believed-to-be-Pakistani, the MEA said. Similarly, Pakistan has shared lists with details of 58 civil prisoners and 199 fishermen in its custody, who are Indian or believed-to-be-Indian.
The Government of India has called for early release and repatriation of civil prisoners, fishermen along with their boats, and missing Indian defense personnel from Pakistan’s custody, the MEA statement read.
Pakistan has also been urged to expedite the release and repatriation of 167 Indian fishermen and civil prisoners, who have completed their sentence, it said.
India-Pak Relations in 2025
India-Pakistan relations came under severe strain earlier this year following the terror attack in Pahalgam, after which India undertook calibrated diplomatic and strategic measures to safeguard national security.
In response to the attack, India scaled down diplomatic engagement and initiated policy steps reflecting its long-standing position that dialogue cannot coexist with terrorism. Among these measures was the suspension of participation in the Indus Waters Treatment (IWT), a landmark 1960 agreement brokered by the World Bank, highlighting the seriousness with which India viewed the security situation.
India launched Operation Sindoor on 7 May 2025, targeting terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir in response to the attack.
India and Pakistan today exchanged, through diplomatic channels, simultaneously at New Delhi and Islamabad, the list of nuclear installations and facilities.
In addition, Pakistan has been asked to provide immediate consular access to 35 civil prisoners and fishermen in Pakistan’s custody, who are believed-to-be-Indian and have not been provided consular access so far.
“As a result of the sustained efforts by the Government of India, 2,661 Indian fishermen and 71 Indian civil prisoners have been repatriated from Pakistan since 2014. This includes 500 Indian fishermen and 13 Indian civilian prisoners who have been repatriated from Pakistan since 2023 till date,” the MEA statement said.
