General Raheel Sharif held meetings with General Joseph Votel, Commander US CENTCOM, and Chiefs of Armies of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan
Pakistan Army Chief General Raheel Sharif held meetings with Commander US CENTCOM and regional Army Chiefs in Germany to discuss regional security challenges.
Speaking at the conference, Pakistan Army Chief General Raheel Sharif criticized India for its unwillingness to resolve the longstanding Kashmir dispute, that directly fan misunderstanding and feed into persistent regional culture of conflict.
General Raheel Sharif accused India’s premier spy agency of spilling the blood of innocents through an ‘indirect strategy.’
General Raheel Sharif arrived in Germany on Monday for one-day official visit to participate in a conference of Chiefs of Staffs of the Armed Forces being held under auspices of United States Central Command (US CENTCOM). The host General Joseph Votel, Commander US CENTCOM, Chiefs of Armies of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, are participating in the conference.
The host General Joseph Votel, Commander US CENTCOM, Chiefs of Armies of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz republic, Tajikistan,Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, joined the conference.
The day-long conference was organised by the commander of US CENTCOM and was attended by military chiefs from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
“Participants expressed their desire to improve multilateral military cooperation amongst their countries in order to coherently meet the emerging security challenges and jointly defeat the menace of terrorism comprehensively,” said a statement issued by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
In his address, the army chief highlighted the regional security environment, common challenges and the way forward for the participating countries.
General Raheel listed the country’s porous Western border and existence of some exploitable spaces, inadequate border management that allows terrorists move, lack of synergy, coordination and institutionalised mechanism of intelligence sharing as some of the major challenges to take the fight against terrorism to its logical end.
Pakistan’s counter-terrorism efforts have turned the tide against terrorism in the country, he said, adding that Pakistan is the biggest victim of terrorism both in terms of human lives and finances.
While elaborating the concept and success of Zarbe Azb, COAS said that Pakistani security forces have fearlessly fought terrorists upfront through an across the board, indiscriminate operation against terrorists of all hue and colour along with their abettors, financiers and sympathizers. He said that with unflinching support of entire nation terrorists’ ideologies and their narrative have been defeated and their sanctuaries and hideouts completely eliminated. Our efforts against residual threat are still continuing, and cant be entirely eliminated without optimum cooperation between neighbouring countries.
General Raheel offered unlimited and sustained support to all participating countries in the conference particularly Afghanistan. The route to a peaceful and prosperous region runs through a stable Afghanistan, which is achievable through comprehensive and coordinated approach, he stressed.