Geneva - The Big Five powers yesterday agreed a plan of "quick action" to prevent an arms race in South Asia following last month's nuclear weapons tests by India and Pakistan, officials said.
The plan was outlined in a three-and-a-half page communique approved by foreign ministers of the US, China, Russia, Britain and France at the end of a three-hour emergency meeting on the crisis caused by the blasts.
According to portions of the communique the nuclear powers pledged to seek "firm commitments" from India and Pakistan not to assemble nuclear weapons or deploy them.
The foreign ministers of the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia pressed India and Pakistan to avoid threatening military movements in divided Kashmir and to sign nuclear non proliferation instruments.