KARACHI - Karachi Corps Commander Lieutenant General Naveed Mukhtar on Thursday said the Karachi’s issue was political and politicians of the city must resolve it.
During his speech in IDEAS 2014 defence exhibition, he vowed to free Karachi from terrorists. “Targeted operation has brought good results as many terrorists and criminals have been arrested,” he added.
He said Pakistan Army would continue operation against the terrorists and criminals but stability in the city could only be restored on political grounds. He said terrorism and drug mafia had lead to an increase in extremism in the city. The extensive networks of terrorism would be seized but it would take time, he added. He further said terrorism had caused deaths of at least 60,000 citizens of Pakistan and it had damaged the urban areas of the city to a great extent.
Mukhtar talked about Urban Terrorism: Case study of Karachi. The event was also attended by Information and Broadcasting Minister Pervaiz Rasheed. He said the defense industry was one of the most significant industries worldwide. With new and emerging threats and trends in terrorism, defence transformation was taking place. “Now war is not limited to the battlefield only but it includes latest trends like cyber warfare, kinetic warfare and other things to deal with the emerging threats, new methods, technology and ideas need to be produced at the same pace as that of the emergence of new threats.
The federal minister appreciated the armed forces, security agencies, police and public servants for their resolute fight against terrorism. “We are eternally grateful to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice while defending us and our values. We are going through defining moments of our history. Our courageous armed forces are combating and eradicating the menace of extremism and terrorism from our soil. In the process, they are making tremendous sacrifices of which the entire nation is proud. The only message that my country wants to iterate is that Pakistan desires peace and tranquility both within and outside its borders,” he added.
Sindh Governor Ishratul Ebad spoke during the Special Session: Security Outlook 2025 and Future of Defence Production. He said, “Pakistan is currently passing through a very decisive moment and if it would not be wrong to say that we are fighting the war of survival. The threats to our security are multidimensional and very complex. The traditional threat from India is still very much alive and the recent aggressive posture from the hardliner Indian government should be a great concern for our security. But the imminent and greatest challenge we face today is the terrorism that has seriously jeopardise the internal security. This has multiple dimensions, both internal and external. The menace of terrorism has caused a huge loss not only to precious lives of Pakistani people but also in terms of socio-economic losses as well, therefore, the first and foremost priority of government is to neutralize this threat’.
Dr Maria Sultan, DG SASSI, said, “The rapid development trends of globalisation including increased trade relations between the countries and regions have essentially reconfigured the defense industrial sector with international collaborative linkages edging out erstwhile stand alone national defence industries. The emergence of new consumer market and industrial production capabilities, and facilities has ushered in a new era necessitating the creation of sustainable joint collaborative projects and meeting the ever dynamic need of the defence section with changing land scope of national security.”
The conference was divided into three sessions. The first one was titled National Security: Terrorism and Counter Terrorism Challenges and was chaired by Lt Gen Sikander Afzal, the second one was Land Forces: Smart Defence in Warfare, and the third session was titled Security Outlook 2025 and Future of Defence production, Pakistan.
Lt Gen Ahsan Mehmood, chairman Pakistan Ordnance Factories Board, said, “Pakistan’s defence industry is diverse and is developed by the government funding which is acting like a force behind the forces for Pakistan.” Naseem Raza of Pakistan Ordnance Factories Board (POF) gave a speech on POF Vision 2025. “We have been able to reinvent our mechanism by becoming self-sufficient and we want to diminish our dependence on government through public-private partnership.”
Lt Gen (r) Khalid Rabbani, former Corps Commander 11 Corps, Pakistan Army, gave a speech on the dynamics of internal security situation in Fata with special reference to border control mechanism and Operation Zarb-e-Azb. “The army has been successful in clearing North Waziristan through indiscriminate operation against the terrorists and the backlash so far has been negligible.” Mr Dae Hwan Kim, Poongsan said, “Korea and Pakistan have common security perceptions thus industries from both the countries need to develop joint ventures in defence industry.”
Lt Gen Syed Wajid Hussain, chairman Heavy Industries Taxila, Pakistan emphasised the role and importance of mechanized forces and HIT support to Pakistan Army. During his speech, he said training procedures should be systematic, logical and cost effective. Brig Sajid Mehmood, director technical, Heavy Industries Taxila talked about Al-Khalid, Security Vehicle Dragoon and armed personnel carrier SAAD.