No agenda, individual greater than national security: COAS

Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir on Tuesday stressed the need for better governance to eliminate terrorism, warning that for how long the security forces would continue to fill "the governance gaps with the blood" of the martyrs.

Addressing the Parliamentary Committee on National Security (NSC), the army chief urged "all elements of national power" to work in harmony to make Pakistan a strong and resilient state. He called for rising above political and personal interests to adopt a unified stance against terrorism.

"We need better governance and must transform Pakistan into a 'hard state'. How long will we continue sacrificing countless lives under a 'soft state' model," he asked. "How long will we continue filling governance gaps with the blood of Pakistan's armed forces and martyrs," he said.

General Asim stressed that the ongoing war against terrorism was "a battle for our survival and that of future generations". He emphasised that there was no agenda, movement, or individual greater than the security of the country.

"For sustainable stability, all elements of national power must work in harmony. I request religious scholars to expose the distorted interpretation of Islam by the Kharijites," he said, referring to the term used for terrorists belonging to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The army chief stated that nothing was more important to the armed forces of Pakistan than the security of the nation. "If the country exists, then we exist," he said. To safeguard Pakistan, he said: "We must unite and adopt a common narrative, setting aside political and personal differences"

The army chief warned that those who believed they could weaken Pakistan through terrorism should understand that "we stand united, and we will not only defeat them" but also their facilitators. "We have complete faith in Allah Almighty; no matter what happens, InshaAllah, we will be successful."