‘Army will defend every inch of nation’

Army chief says armed forces have the capability to counter all threats

For the second time in less than a week, yesterday, Chief of Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif vowed to defend “each and every inch” of Pakistan, as tensions with India run high.

The country’s armed forces have the capability to counter the complete spectrum of threat, he said while addressing officers at the National Counter-Terrorism Centre near Kharian in Punjab province.

They are fully prepared to defend “each and every inch of Pakistan, no matter what the cost”, he said, according to an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement.

Sharif said that Pakistan had, despite being a victim of terrorism for over a decade, been able to turn the tide against terrorism due to the nation’s resilience and the professionalism of its security forces.

During his visit to the counter-terrorism centre, the army chief inaugurated state-of-the-art upgrades to the infrastructure, in order to accommodate the growing demand of foreign armies and Pakistan’s own law enforcement agencies to train alongside the Pakistan army, the statement said.

The addition of the new facilities have made the centre Pakistan’s foreign ministry has criticised India for terming Pakistan a “terrorist state” during the United Nations (UN) General Assembly. An Indian diplomat did so late Wednesday after Pakistan demanded a UN investigation of India’s suppression of protests in disputed Kashmir. The foreign ministry said in its statement yesterday that India’s words cannot alter the facts of Kashmir’s status and the dispute cannot be “wished away.” It said Kashmir’s people have the right to selfdetermination and that Pakistan will continue its diplomatic and political support of them. India had branded Pakistan a “terrorist state” in a response to Pakistan’s criticism of Indian suppression of protests in disputed Kashmir. one of the best counterterrorism training facilities among contemporary armies, it stated.

So far, 231,000 troops of the armed forces, 3,483 police officers and civil armed forces men have been trained at the centre.

According to ISPR, a contingent of Russian ground forces arrived in Pakistan yesterday for the first joint Pakistan-Russian exercise, which kicks off today.

The two-week exercise will continue until October 10, said ISPR Director General LtGen Asim Bajwa.