Sri Lanka military Chief lauds Pakistan Army support against Sri Lankan war against terrorism
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RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Tuesday held meetings with Sri Lankan military leadership and discussed regional security, bilateral defence cooperation and progress on the ongoing projects between the two South Asian countries.
The Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa reached Sri Lanka on Tuesday for a two official visit on the invitation of his Sri Lankan counterpart.
During the visit, General Bajwa remarked that Pakistan and Sri Lanka were probably the only countries which understand what it takes to defeat the menace of terrorism.
COAS held meetings with the Sri Lankan military leadership including the Chief of Defence Staff, the Chiefs of all three services. Upon arrival, General Bajwa was given guards of honour at the headquarters of all three services.
The COAS also visited the Command and Staff College Sri Lanka and interacted with faculty and staff.
The leadership of Sri Lankan expressed their gratitude and appreciation for Pakistan’s unequivocal moral and material support during Sri Lanka’s successful war on terror.
They also appreciated successes of Pakistan Army in ongoing War on Terror. COAS highlighted that having cleared troubled areas from terrorists of all hues and colours, Pakistan is now going after their disorganised residual presence under Operation Radd-ul-Fasad.
During the meetings, various new initiatives and ongoing projects were discussed to improve the existing defence ties between the two brotherly countries.
Pakistan Army had helped train the Sri Lankan Armed Forces for one of the longest civil war cum terrorist war by the Tamil Tigers on the Sri Lankan soil for almost more than 3 decades.
Pakistan Army had physically trained in its military and Air Force academics the Sri Lankan Air Force and the Army officials on the official request of the Sri Lankan government. Sri Lanka has always acknowledged the help and support of the Pakistan Army in the worst years of the terrorism war.
It was also reported and highly speculated that Indian government and the Indian intelligence agencies were behind the proxy war that virtually left the Sri Lankan government crippled for years.
Pakistan and Sri Lanka share strong defence and counter terrorism ties and the recent visit of the Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javad Bajwa would further help in strengthening the bilatrial defence ties with Srilanka.
From the Indian point of view the visit of the Chief of Pakistan Army Staff is also crucial that India always considered Sri Lanka as its backyard and would never like the growing defence ties of the Pakistan military with its Sri Lankan counterpart.
India had also earlier raised serious eyebrows over Sri Lankan government decision in which Sri Lanka has leased out a strategic port to China.
Chinese presence and now followed by the presence of the Pakistan Army Chief on the Sri Lankan soil which India considers it's backyard has created concerns in the Indian Military establishment. Indian military establishment considers the presence of the Pakistan China military and the Navies in its backyard as a serious secuity threat to India.
India considers this step by Pakistan and China as containment and the encirclement of India in the region by strategic partners Pakistan and China.
