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Saturday, March 16, 2024

Pakistan facing ‘hybrid threats’: Bajwa asks the nation to be prepared

News Analysis |

The Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa has said on Monday that the Pakistani nation is facing a hybrid conflict where religious, ethnic and sectarian differences are being exploited and that requires a comprehensive national response.

“We are now confronting a hybrid conflict where the focus is shifting to subversion on religious, sectarian, ethnic and social issues. This needs a comprehensive national response,” he said while addressing participants of the National Security Workshop-20 at the General Headquarters (GHQ).

The continuation of the terrorist attacks in Balochistan as well as the arrest of Indian intelligence officer Kulbhushan Yadav from the area are proofs of these assertions.

“It’s our time to rise and progress and we must grasp the opportunity achieved after countless sacrifice,” Gen Qamar said. “We now have a greater responsibility to ensure that our people, especially youth, stay aware and steadfast against propaganda onslaught being launched through a soft offensive.

It is our time to rise and progress and we must grasp the opportunity achieved after countless sacrifices,” he said. The COAS said that Pakistan had been subjected to various threats, especially during the last two decades and nation and its armed forces were on a positive trajectory to defeat all threats facing the country effectively.

Read more: CPEC: Exposed to hybrid warfare – Dr. Zafar Jaspal

After a briefing on the security situation in Pakistan, challenges, and responses, the participants had an interactive session with the army chief. The National Security Workshop is an annual event at the National Defense University, where participants include representatives from all segments of society including armed forces, parliamentarians, bureaucracy, and others.

The COAS said that Pakistan had been subjected to various threats, especially during the last two decades and nation and its armed forces.

The Army Chief’s statements are noteworthy in the face of recent events. A bomb blast on Sunday killed three paramilitary soldiers and wounded four others in Pakistan’s troubled southwest, officials said. The incident happened in Margat area on the outskirts of Quetta, the capital of oil and gas-rich Balochistan province.

Read more: What is hybrid warfare? – Ikram Sehgal

Balochistan is a resource-rich province of Pakistan. Its importance has increased considerably over the past few years after the launching of the mega CPEC project. This is a rail-road project being hurled with China’s finances with the aim to by-pass the hazardous Strait of Hormuz.

CPEC is projected to push Pakistan onto the world stage as a strong economic power. However, the enemies of Pakistan view this as a strategic threat and have been financing the beleaguered Baloch insurgency. Terrorist outfits such as BLA, BRA, ISIS-K and LeJ etc have been propped up to create hurdles in the realization of this project. The continuation of the terrorist attacks in Balochistan as well as the arrest of Indian intelligence officer Kulbhushan Yadav from the area are proofs of these assertions.