Kabul defence conference: Regions prosper together, says COAS

KABUL: Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Tuesday said that regions develop as a whole, not individual countries.

The COAS said this while speaking at the Chiefs of Defence (CHOD) conference in Kabul. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Commander US Centcom, Commander Resolute Support Mission (RSM) and military chiefs of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan also attended the conference.

The conference agreed to continue cooperation for peace and stability in the region. General Bajwa stated that the path to regional peace and stability passes through Afghanistan. He said that Pakistan has eliminated all terrorist sanctuaries from its soil, however, residual signatures of terrorists, who take advantage of the presence of 2.7 million Afghan refugees and absence of effective border security coordination, are also being traced and targeted through the ongoing operation Raddul Fasad.

The army chief also assured that the Pakistani territory was not allowed to be used against any other country and Pakistan expected the same in reciprocity. He said that collaborative approach and persistence is the answer to all challenges, for which Pakistan is ready to play its part.