ISLAMABAD: India and Pakistan on Sunday exchanged lists of their respective nuclear facilities on the first day of the New Year as per an accord in place since 1988.

An official statement issued by Pakistan Foreign Office said here that the swap took place under an agreement signed in 1988 on the prohibition of attacks on each other's nuclear installations in the event of war.

Pakistan Foreign Office Director (India Desk), Zaheer Janjua handed over the list to Sibi George, First Secretary (Political) in the Indian High Commission here at 11:00 a.m., Pakistan standard time. Similarly, in New Delhi an official of the Indian External Affairs Ministry handed over the Indian nuclear facilities list to the First Secretary of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi Khalid Jamali at 11:30 a.m., Indian Standard Time.

The agreement came into force in 1991 and the first such exchange of information was on January 1, 1992.

Both the countries have since then continued with the practice, even at the height of tensions in 2002 and 2003.

Under the agreement both Pakistan and India are to refrain from attacking each other's nuclear facilities in the event of a war. India went nuclear in May 1998 and within few days Pakistan followed suit.

Today's exchange of list on nuclear facilities came two weeks before the scheduled third round of composite dialogue slated in New Delhi.

To be inaugurated by the foreign secretaries of the two countries, the talks would focus on Kashmir and security related confidence building measures (CBMs).

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