The US seeks to establish new military bases in Pakistan to keep the country destabilized and control its nuclear weapons, says a former head of Pakistan's intelligence service.

In an exclusive interview with Press TV on Sunday, Hamid Gul said that Washington planned to expand its embassy and increase its security guards in Pakistan.

"There are already three thousand five hundred of them [US security guards] and one thousand more are coming," Gul said.

He also noted that Americans seek to set up a large intelligence network inside Pakistan under the pretext of giving financial aid to the country.

"They [Americans] are going to set up a large intelligence network inside Pakistan. They say because we are spending money directly on projects, therefore we need the security guards and we are bringing in the contractors," said Gul.

US officials "want to go for Pakistan's nuclear assets. They are inching close to those nuclear assets day by day," he added.

When asked about Washington's long-term goal in Pakistan, the former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) said that the United States wants to keep the country destabilized.

Washington's decision to expand its embassy in Pakistan has also rung alarm bells in China with Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Luo Zhaohui, expressing concern over the planned measure.

"China has concerns over the expansion of the US Embassy in Islamabad and the United States should expand its Embassy by materializing rules and regulations of Pakistan," Zhaohui said at a news conference.

AGB/DT