Pakistan came dangerously close to a nuclear escalation following India’s recent military strikes on Pakistani territory, according to Rana Sanaullah, a senior advisor to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Speaking in a televised interview, Sanaullah revealed that Pakistan had only 30 to 45 seconds to determine whether an incoming Indian BrahMos missile carried a nuclear warhead during the May 7 military operation.
The missile struck the Nur Khan Airbase near Rawalpindi, one of 11 Pakistani military installations reportedly targeted by India during Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terrorist attack that killed 26 people, mostly civilians.
“When India fired a BrahMos missile that hit our Nur Khan airbase, Pakistan’s military had just 30 or 45 seconds to assess whether it was nuclear-armed,” Sanaullah said. “Any misjudgment in those critical moments could have led to a retaliatory strike, possibly triggering a full-scale nuclear conflict.”
He added that while India did not use a nuclear warhead, the situation was “extremely dangerous” and could have had catastrophic consequences. “If people on our side misunderstood the threat, or acted without clarity, it could have escalated into a global nuclear war,” he warned.
Nur Khan Airbase, located in Chaklala near Pakistan’s capital, is a key strategic installation for the Pakistan Air Force. Other reported targets in the Indian operation included Sargodha, Rafiqui, Jacobabad, and Murid airbases, all known to host military infrastructure linked to Pakistan's defense and intelligence network.
India has not officially commented on the nature of the weaponry used in the operation, but the inclusion of the BrahMos, a supersonic cruise missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads, underscores the gravity of the incident and the razor-thin margin that prevented a major regional and possibly global crisis.
The incident has reignited calls for stronger communication channels and de-escalation protocols between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, whose history has been marked by conflict and deep mistrust.
