No individual, group will be allowed to blackmail the state: Army chief

Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa said on Monday that no individual or group will be allowed to blackmail the state on the basis of area, ethnicity, ideology or religion.

He called upon the nation to work to make Pakistan "progressive, peaceful and a modern Islamic and welfare state".

Addressing the Defence Day ceremony held at the General Headquarters on Monday, he said Pakistan's strength and preservation are in democracy, adding that to make it more stable, we will have to follow the principles of following the Constitution, justice, tolerance, and equality.

He further said negative attitudes like criticism for the sake of criticism, hatred, and intolerance should be discouraged. "If Pakistan has to progress, we will have to bury our ego and self-interest. [...] And according to [former] US president John F. Kennedy, 'Do not ask what the country can do for you, ask what you can do for the country'."

Talking about the needs of the 21st century, Gen Bajwa said, "We should work along the lines of people's progress and happiness, regional cooperation and acquiring modern technology instead of the negative traditional geopolitical thought against each other."

"I believe that education, health, infrastructure development, population control, and climate change should be our priorities," he added.

He assured the nation that Pakistan's armed forces have all the required capabilities to fight external and internal threats and traditional and non-traditional wars.

"If any enemy wants to fight us, it will find us ready at every moment and on every front," he said.

He noted that Pakistan's armed forces are considered among the best globally, saying that "we have fought every enemy courageously and defeated all external and internal plots and above all, by achieving self-sustainability in defence capabilities, made the country's defence impenetrable."

We want security and development of the Afghan people and expect the major powers in the region and the world, including the United Nations, to play a positive role in bringing lasting peace to Afghanistan: COAS

"We have no doubt that the relationship between Pakistan Army and the nation is the strong shield that has always defeated the enemy's plots and black-handed tactics against Pakistan and this unity has always made us persevere."

Gen Bajwa also paid tribute to the martyrs, saying the entire nation was indebted to them. "I assure you that the sacrifices of your loved ones will never be forgotten or wasted," he told the families.

Talking about the Afghanistan situation, he said that we are keeping a close watch on the situation in the region. "We want security and development of the Afghan people and expect the major powers in the region and the world, including the United Nations, to play a positive role in bringing lasting peace to Afghanistan," he said.

The COAS reiterated that Pakistan expects a stable and representative government in Afghanistan, which respects human rights and doesn't allow its territory to be used against any other country.