Besides, critics assume that a nuclear force will inevitably be a bloated and horrendously expensive one. The French and the British have small but deadly forces, and maybe even these are too big. A sensible nuclear force can be very small. For deterrence to be credible, nuclear weapons have to be deployed. In other words, seeing is believing.
Indian missiles can hit Pakistan in two to three minutes, and vice versa.
A nuclear confrontation between India and Pakistan will inevitably spark off a dangerous and expensive arms race. This alarmist position echoes the nonproliferationist bias emanating from the United States and its fellow-travellers. Both countries have had nuclear weapons capability for a long time, India since the 1970s and Pakistan since the late 1980s. They haven't even got around to deployment yet, not even two years after the Pokhran-II and Chagai tests. On the contrary, they have perfected the art of low-intensity fighting without losing control of the situation.