Cabinet approves Pakistan’s first-ever National Security Policy: NSA

National Security Adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf announced on Tuesday that the federal cabinet approved Pakistan’s first-ever National Security Policy (NSP).

“It is a truly historic achievement; a citizen-centric comprehensive Nat[tional] Sec[urity] policy with economic security at the core will now be pursued in earnest,” the NSA said in a tweet.

A day earlier, it was reported that the National Security Council (NSC) approved Pakistan’s first-ever NSP 2022-2026, which aims at bolstering the country’s economic security and tackling external as well as internal challenges.

Today, the NSA further added that this umbrella document will, over time, help guide sectoral policies for the fulfilment of our national security objectives.

“I would like to thank the civil and military leadership for all their support and input. The Policy would not have seen the light of day without the Prime Minister’s constant leadership and encouragement,” said the NSA.

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Yusuf further said that he was extremely fortunate to have such a dedicated team at the Strategic Policy Planning Cell (SSPC).

“… [I] would like to congratulate them and the entire team of the National Security Division for their hardwork and dedication over the years in bringing the policy to fruition,” he added.

The NSA also informed that a plan for the policy's implementation has also been developed. "A public version of the NSP document will be launched by the PM and released in due course," added Yusuf. 

The security policy was unveiled at the 36th NSC meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan. The meeting was attended by federal ministers for foreign affairs, defence, information and broadcasting, interior, finance, human rights, chairman joint chiefs of staff committee, all services chiefs, national security adviser and senior civil and military officers.