‘Pakistan will lose any war with India...’: Ex-CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou warns Islamabad
“When I was stationed in Pakistan in 2002, I was told unofficially that the Pentagon had control of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal — that President Musharraf had turned control over to the United States,” Kiriakou said.
- Oct 24, 2025,
- Updated Oct 24, 2025 10:10 PM IST
Former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou, who once led counterterrorism operations in Pakistan, has said that Islamabad must “realise there is nothing positive” in engaging in conflict with India, warning that Pakistan would “lose any conventional war” against its neighbour.
In an interview with ANI, Kiriakou — who spent 15 years inside the CIA and was among the first insiders to expose America’s post-9/11 torture program — shared startling recollections from his time in South Asia.
“When I was stationed in Pakistan in 2002, I was told unofficially that the Pentagon had control of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal — that President Musharraf had turned control over to the United States,” Kiriakou said. “But in the years since, the Pakistanis have publicly and repeatedly denied this, insisting that their generals control their own nuclear weapons.”
Asked whether Washington ever informed New Delhi about this alleged control, Kiriakou said he doubted it. “The Americans never told India that control of Pakistani nukes also lay with the US,” he remarked. “But I can tell you definitively that the State Department was telling both sides — if you’re going to fight, fight. Keep it short and keep it non-nuclear. Because if nuclear weapons are introduced, the whole world changes.”
Calling for restraint, Kiriakou was categorical about the outcome of any future conflict: “Nothing, literally nothing good will come of an actual war between India and Pakistan because the Pakistanis will lose. It’s as simple as that. And I’m not talking about nuclear weapons — I’m talking about a conventional war.”
His comments come as India maintains a firm stance against nuclear blackmail, reaffirming its resolve to respond decisively to terrorism. New Delhi’s military posture has evolved significantly over the years — from the surgical strikes across the Line of Control in 2016 and the Balakot airstrikes in 2019, to Operation Sindoor in May 2025, when India targeted terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir following the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 lives.
Former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou, who once led counterterrorism operations in Pakistan, has said that Islamabad must “realise there is nothing positive” in engaging in conflict with India, warning that Pakistan would “lose any conventional war” against its neighbour.
In an interview with ANI, Kiriakou — who spent 15 years inside the CIA and was among the first insiders to expose America’s post-9/11 torture program — shared startling recollections from his time in South Asia.
“When I was stationed in Pakistan in 2002, I was told unofficially that the Pentagon had control of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal — that President Musharraf had turned control over to the United States,” Kiriakou said. “But in the years since, the Pakistanis have publicly and repeatedly denied this, insisting that their generals control their own nuclear weapons.”
Asked whether Washington ever informed New Delhi about this alleged control, Kiriakou said he doubted it. “The Americans never told India that control of Pakistani nukes also lay with the US,” he remarked. “But I can tell you definitively that the State Department was telling both sides — if you’re going to fight, fight. Keep it short and keep it non-nuclear. Because if nuclear weapons are introduced, the whole world changes.”
Calling for restraint, Kiriakou was categorical about the outcome of any future conflict: “Nothing, literally nothing good will come of an actual war between India and Pakistan because the Pakistanis will lose. It’s as simple as that. And I’m not talking about nuclear weapons — I’m talking about a conventional war.”
His comments come as India maintains a firm stance against nuclear blackmail, reaffirming its resolve to respond decisively to terrorism. New Delhi’s military posture has evolved significantly over the years — from the surgical strikes across the Line of Control in 2016 and the Balakot airstrikes in 2019, to Operation Sindoor in May 2025, when India targeted terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir following the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 lives.