Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has categorically stated that Pakistan does not want to become part of any camp politics as it wants to enhance and widen its relations with both China and United States, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The Army Chief said that Pakistan enjoys cordial relations with China with whom it has established strategic collaboration as is evident by our commitment to China Pakistan Economic Corridor project (CPEC).
At the same time, the COAS touted that Pakistan equally shares a long history of excellent strategic ties with the US which is also our biggest export market.
Army Chief Gen Bajwa was addressing a two-day Islamabad Security Dialogue on Saturday.
While addressing the conference, Gen Bajwa declared that the firing of an Indian missile into the Pakistani territory is a matter of great concern as its eastern neighbor had not alerted it before hand.
He expressed his grave concern over landing of the Indian missile into Pakistani territory on March 9, which New Delhi after a lapse of two days had acknowledged that the missile was fired ‘accidentally’ and ordered an inquiry into it. However, Pakistan asked India to launch a joint probe to which New Delhi did not agree.
The Army Chief gave vent to his apprehension whether the Indian artillery was secured or not. He asked India to explain its position to Pakistan and the rest of the world.
“It (accidental missile firing) raises serious questions about India's ability to manage and operate high end weapon systems. Pakistan has called for a thorough probe into the incident. We expect India to provide evidence to ensure Pakistan and the world community that their weapons are safe and secured,” the COAS told the participants of the moot.
He also regretted that India did not inform Pakistan about the firing of the missile. It could have resulted in the loss of lives.
On Kashmir, the Army Chief said Pakistan believes in dialogue and diplomacy for the resolution of the issue.
“Pakistan continues to believe in using diplomacy and dialogue to resolve all outstanding issues with India including Kashmir dispute. Pakistan is ready to move forward on this front, if India also agrees to do so,” he offered to his eastern neighbour.
The Army Chief said that security and stability of the region is part of our policy. Pakistan wants to resolve issues confronted by this region through multilateral cooperation. The economic security and provision of security to people are of great importance, he maintained.
He said Pakistan continues to work closely with international community to pursue peace and stability in Afghanistan. He said it is our collective responsibility towards the Afghan people to ensure timely and adequate humanitarian aid flows into the country. He warned that the consequences of our inability to address the humanitarian crisis will lead to refugee crisis and will again make Afghanistan an epicentre of terrorism.
Reaffirming Pakistan's unwavering commitment to defeat terrorism, the Army Chief said we have achieved great successes in war against terrorism which have resulted in marked improvement in the internal security situation of Pakistan. We have sacrificed lives of our 90,000 people, he added. But, he said, the threat of terrorism and violent extremism remains and our struggle will continue till we eliminate the last terrorist and the cause of terrorism from the region.
The Army Chief enunciated that the region is facing numerous issues like terrorism, poverty and environmental changes. Security and stability are cornerstone for the progress and development of countries.
Pakistan is hosting second iteration of the Islamabad Security Dialogue on the 1st and 2nd of April, bringing together local intelligentsia and international policy experts to discuss emerging challenges in international security under the theme “Comprehensive Security: Reimagining International Cooperation”.