*(Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir Sends Stern Warning to India) *
*ISLAMABAD : *Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, said on Sunday that Pakistan would inflict “much more destruction” in response to any future aggression.
Addressing a ceremony marking the first anniversary of what the state describes as “Marka-e-Haq” (Battle of Truth) at the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Rawalpindi, the CDF said, Pakistan defeated the enemy on all fronts, from defence to the media. Pakistan’s future is bright, he said.
He said Pakistan came victorious from both Bunyanun Masrsoos and Marka-e-Haq by the Grace of Almighty Allah. Pakistan’s defence was invincible in the past and would be undefeatable in the future as well, he said.
“The way our youngsters defeated the negative propaganda of the enemy has no parallel in history,” he said, adding that wars in the present and in the future would be fought on multidomain fronts.
He urged Pakistanis to contribute to Pakistan’s development and prosperity as they did to the success of the Marka-e-Haq.
In addition to warning India against any misadventure, he also called upon Afghanistan to prevent its soil from being used against Pakistan by the terrorists taking refuge therein. He said the war against terrorism would continue until the elimination of the last terrorist.
He said Pakistan is continuously facing a terror threat from both Afghanistan and India. Pakistan pays tribute and salutes the people of Balochistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who are fighting the war against terrorism, he added.
He said the Battle of Truth elevated Pakistan’s status in the world arena, and today, Islamabad is hosting historic peace talks between the US and Iran. “Today’s Pakistan has increased the number of its friends in the world,” he added.
“We are not only providing Pakistan’s armed forces with new equipment, but also a new approach and direction,” he said.
“The enemy was dreaming of hegemony in the region, forgetting that its dreams were beyond its capacity,” he maintained. “Our strategy is based on peace, not war,” he added.
According to the Field Marshal, the Pakistan Air Force established a new precedent in air manoeuvres and gained the upper hand in the air fight.
Speaking before senior military commanders and representatives of the three armed services, the Field Marshal said Pakistan’s armed forces had drawn important operational lessons from last year’s conflict and significantly enhanced their preparedness, deterrence and response capabilities.
He said Pakistan desired regional peace and stability but would respond with greater force to any future attempt to threaten the country’s sovereignty or territorial integrity.
The ceremony began with a wreath-laying at Yadgar-e-Shuhada, where contingents from the army, navy and air force presented a tri-services salute to the personnel martyred during the war on terror.