The Foreign Office rejected on Friday reports of the visit of a high-level delegation of the International Atomic Energy Agency to the country.

“Any stories regarding the visit of a high-level IAEA delegation to Pakistan are fake news,” the FO spokesperson said in response to media queries.

The clarification comes after several users, who appeared to be PTI supporters based on their past posts and account descriptions, shared a video clip from an Indian news segment by Zee News on a meeting between IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The posts questioned whether the government had closed a deal to hand over its nuclear arsenal.

“No official from IAEA is currently visiting Pakistan, nor are any policy talks planned in the near future with IAEA. Director General IAEA visited Pakistan in February 2023. This Ministry had issued briefings to the media on the occasion.”

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar also responded to the FO spokesperson’s clarification and said: “Fake news from an anchor based abroad clearly rebutted. Such blatant lies and propaganda to harm the state based on malicious intent will be responded to. Make no mistake.”

The meeting shown in the viral video clip took place between the IAEA DG and PM Shehbaz last year in February when they met to increase collaboration in peaceful applications of nuclear science and technology.