Islamabad: Not withstanding the efforts being taken by the BJP government at the Centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to improve relations with neighbouring countries, Pakistan has made a provocative statement threatening that the option to use nuclear weapons is always available to them.

The statement was made by Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who also accused India of waging a proxy war against the country through terrorism, IANS reported on Wednesday.

If we need to use nuclear weapons for our survival, we will, Pakistan's Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said.

Asif told Geo News programme 'Jirga' that use of nuclear weapons was always an option as they were not kept merely for show but as deterrents.

"We should pray that such an option never arises, but if we need to use them (nuclear weapons) for our survival, we will," he had said on Monday.

He also said that “fuelling terrorism directly or indirectly is India’s proxy war in Pakistan”.

Asif said that Pakistan’s defence capability was strong.