ISLAMABAD:Defense and international relations experts on Thursday appreciated the government of Pakistan’s commitment to root out terrorism from its soil. They said that many terrorist organizations were operating from its western border.
Taking part in a Radio Pakistan current affairs program, defense analyst Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Raza Muhammad Khan said that Pakistan was facing a number of internal and external threats. He said that many militant organizations were operating from Afghanistan and there was no doubt that India was providing support to these outfits.
Raza Muhammad Khan said that the terrorists were entering from the Afghan border as the Pak-Afghan border was not fenced completely. “Pakistan has conveyed a clear-cut message that the government will adopt zero-tolerance policy against terrorism and all options will be utilized to combat the menace of terrorism,” he said.
He said that National Security Policy and National Action Plan were devised to deal with the security issues and under NAP the provinces were to establish counter-terrorism departments. He said that Pakistan’s intelligence agencies were fully capable of dealing with the terrorists and their sleeper cells in a befitting way.
International relations expert Dr. Zahid Anwar Khan said that Pakistan was a victim of terrorism though it had always played a strong role in the war against terrorism.
He said that Pakistan has played a front-line role in the war against terrorism and it was working for strengthening regional peace and stability. “Our economy is still suffering as Pakistan alone fought this crucial war. Moreover, we have lost over 80,000 precious lives in this war”, he maintained.
He said that on the contrary the role of India was entirely different. He said that minorities in India were the target of Hindu extremist organizations. India is also denying the Kashmiris their fundamental right to self-determination. “Pakistan has always provided moral, political and diplomatic support to Kashmir cause and exposed the Indian state-terrorism against the minorities within India and in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir,” he remarked.
He opined that Pakistan remained the only hurdle in India’s hegemonic designs in the region. The international community, he said, was well aware of the Indian policies yet it was hesitant to force it to stop human rights violations in India and in the IIOJ&K.