ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has expressed his concerns over actions by foreign intelligence agencies aimed at destabilizing Pakistan but vowed to defeat enemies’ all such designs.
“We will collectively defeat all designs of our enemies and make Pakistan a secure and affluent country no matter what the cost,” he said during his visit to Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Headquarter in Islamabad on Saturday.
In a series of tweets, the Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asim Bajwa wrote that the prime minister was also accompanied by the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif during his visit to the ISI headquarter.
The prime minister said, according to the DG ISPR, that terrorism and extremism are the biggest challenges to a secure and prosperous Pakistan.
Nawaz Sharif lauded the efforts and achievements of ISI in countering terrorists’ attempts and paid rich tributes to the officers and men of the agency who have laid their lives in the line of duty.
“We are proud of our premier intelligence agency and they deserve due recognition and acknowledgement,” he said.
Sharif emphasized the need for more proactive and coordinated role of all intelligence agencies to bring optimum effects to defeat all threats.
The prime minister also expressed his serious concerns about recent statements by the Indian political leadership.
Recently, the Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar while speaking at an event in New Delhi advocated the use of terrorism to counter terrorism from other countries. He asserted that terrorists have to be neutralized only through terrorists.
“We would take all possible measures to counter any anti Pakistan acts,” Nawaz Sharif said.
On the occasion, the Director General ISI General Rizwan Akhtar briefed the prime minister and the COAS on internal and external security situation of the country and ongoing counter terrorism operations.
The DG ISI also briefed recent ongoing successful Intelligence-based operations and number of terrorists attempts averted in near past and terrorists networks busted across the country.
The Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Special Advisers to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and Tariq Fatemi were also present on this occasion.
