Federal Minister for Defense, Khawaja Muhammad Asif Sunday said that a stable and peaceful Afghanistan was a guarantee for peace and stability of Pakistan and region.
The minister lauded the proactive and positive efforts made by China in finding a peaceful resolution of Afghan problem.
He made these remarks while addressing the Xiangshan Forum’s plenary session on the topic `regional terrorism: roots and solutions,’ in Beijing, said a press release recieved here.
The benefits from projects like China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) could be accrued only through peace which would usher in a new era of development and prosperity in the region, the minister added.
He emphasized the need for addressing basic concerns of people of the region and to deny space to extremist elements who take advantage of the fault lines existing in their respective societies.
In order to bring peace and stability, he called for “a need to introduce a counter narrative along with a comprehensive social, economic and political reforms package in line with the culture, traditions and aspirations of the people.”
The Minister condemned all acts of terrorism and called on the world community to recognize the basic reasons responsible for the fissures and fault lines existing within terrorism affected regions.
He also mentioned the hitherto unresolved conflicts of Palestine and Kashmir, the unending events of gross human rights violations and unfulfilled promises by the world community failing to address the root causes of these conflicts.
He said that Pakistan gave refuge to over three million Afghans during the Afghan war.
The minister said continued instability in that country had severe impacts, adding that Pakistan had suffered a loss of 60 thousand lives and billions of dollars in economic loss.
He said that Pakistan’s armed forces had conducted various operations in tribal areas since 2003 and the latest operation Zarb-e-Azb vastly outnumbered achievements compared to other international forces’ achievements in Afghanistan since 13 years.
The world needed to recognize the sacrifices by Pakistan over the past three decades, he stressed.
Referring to south Asian security and stability, he said that all disputes needed to be resolved amicably to offset chances of escalation. While Pakistan had been forcefully advocating early resumption of dialogue process with India, there was a need to reduce tension by avoiding escalation of hostilities at the Line of Control and the Working Boundary, the Minister underscored.
Participants from Pakistan also included several scholars and intellectuals including the Chairman Institute of Strategic Studies Mr. Khalid Mehmood, President Institute of Regional Studies Mr. Arif Ayub, Director south Asian Strategic Stability Institute Maria Sultan.
In addition to Defense ministers, the forum was also attended by senior military officials from participating countries, as well as noted scholars and academics.
