General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), said Friday that the international community’s constructive involvement and long-term humanitarian support for Afghanistan is critical for the country’s long-term peace and security.
The army chief made his remarks during the Corps Commander Conference, which he convened at General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, according to a release from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Participants at the conference conducted a detailed look at the global, regional, and local security environments, according to a statement from the military’s media wing.
According to the statement, the forum was informed about the current situation in Afghanistan, particularly the security along the Pak-Afghan Border and adequate protections in place against different threats.
During the discussion, the army commander expressed pleasure with the effectiveness of the comprehensive border management regime, which allowed Pakistan’s borders and internal security to stay intact despite the region’s turmoil.
According to the military’s media wing, the COAS acknowledged the army’s cooperation and involvement in the evacuation of foreigners and Afghans from Afghanistan to other countries.
The army chief praised the formations for their efforts in ensuring the peaceful conduct of Muharram-related festivities and ordered full preparedness to confront conventional and non-conventional threats.
“At all costs, the intentions of external and domestic forces hostile to Pakistan’s peace and stability will be foiled,” the army commander said.
Meanwhile, the forum emphasised the importance of close cooperation among all regional stakeholders for a successful and stable area, according to the statement.
Syed Ali Shah Geelani, the leader of the indigenous liberation movement in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, was also honoured at the event for his lifelong fight and sacrifices.
Ali Geelani, a symbol of the Kashmiri independence movement and former chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), died last week in Srinagar, India’s occupied Kashmir metropolis.
According to the military’s media wing, the conference also voiced sympathy with Kashmiri people who continue to face Indian governmental persecution and brutality.
The move occurred after Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi encouraged the international community to recognise Afghanistan’s new reality and cooperate with it in the sake of regional peace and security.
FM Qureshi, speaking with his Spanish colleague Jose Manuel Albares to the media in Islamabad, stated that isolating Afghanistan will have significant implications.
The policy of fear, pressure, and coercion, according to Pakistan’s top diplomat, “has not succeeded,” and “we need to embrace a fresh constructive approach toward Afghanistan.”
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) William Joseph Burns met with COAS Bajwa the day before and reviewed the developing situation in Afghanistan, according to an ISPR release.
The conference, which focused on the Afghanistan situation and regional security after the US departure and the creation of the Taliban administration in Kabul, was also attended by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Lt Gen Faiz Hameed, according to the ISPR.
According to the ISPR, Pakistan “remains dedicated to collaborating with its international partners for regional peace and ensuring a secure and bright future for [the] Afghan people.”