Claims about military dimension of autoclave seized by India factually incorrect: Pakistan

Pakistan on Saturday rejected as "factually incorrect" India's assertion that the industrial autoclave seized from a Karachi-bound Chinese ship at the Kandla port has military applications, saying similar furnaces are being used in several industries around the world over.

India on Thursday said it has conveyed its concerns to China after seizure of an item having military applications from a Chinese ship which was detained by Indian authorities at Gujarat's Kandla port last month.

The autoclave seized from 'Da Cui Yan', the Hong Kong flagged ship bound for Karachi.

"We have noted the reports about inspection and seizure by the Indian authorities of an item from a Pakistan bound commercial vessel by the Indian authorities," Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) said.

It said that the private company in Pakistan which had imported the item under question had approached the government.

"Claims about the possible military dimension of the held item are factually incorrect. Similar furnaces are being used in several industries in Pakistan and the world over, the FO said.

It further said that the item under question is a heat treatment furnace casing system which has several industrial applications and it is not listed in any international export control list.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Thursday the autoclave seized from the ship is a heat treatment furnace shell system and not a dual-use item under the non-proliferation and export control.

The dual-use products or items have both civilian and military use. The items put under restricted list are used on missiles and nuclear weapons.

The FO said that contrary to what is being claimed, the item was correctly declared in the relevant documentation and there was no attempt to hide or conceal any information.