Islamabad: Pakistan Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa According to a media report on Wednesday, the country has been assured that the armed forces have distanced themselves from politics and want to continue to do so.
General Bajwa, who is in the US, also reiterated his promise to step down after completing his second three-year term in November and said he would fulfill the earlier promise, Dawn newspaper reported.
The 61-year-old Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Bajwa will retire on November 29. Bajwa was given an extension in 2019 for a second term of three years.
His remarks came at a lunch hosted at the Pakistan Embassy in Washington.
According to those who attended the event, Bajwa said the armed forces had distanced themselves from politics and wanted to continue to do so, the newspaper reported.
These remarks came in the wake of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s anti-military statement.
Bajwa has held the top post of Pakistan Army for six years. He was initially appointed in 2016, but after a three-year tenure, in 2019, the then government of Imran Khan extended his service for another three years.
The appointment of the Army Chief is the sole prerogative of the Prime Minister. The upcoming appointment of the new Army Chief is in the news for all the wrong reasons.
When Khan was in power, the opposition accused him of trying to bring in an army chief of his choice who could support his alleged agenda of torturing opposition leaders.
Ever since he lost power, the equation has changed and now Khan is saying that the coalition government wants to install an army chief of his choice to protect looted property and steal general elections.
The mighty military, which has ruled a coup-prone country for more than half of its 75-plus years of existence, has so far wielded considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy.
Bajwa also emphasized that reviving Pakistan’s debilitated economy should be the top priority of all as the nation would not be able to achieve its goals without a strong economy.
Addressing an audience, including several Pakistani diplomats, the army chief said, “There can be no diplomacy without a strong economy.”
General Bajwa, who is in the US, also reiterated his promise to step down after completing his second three-year term in November and said he would fulfill the earlier promise, Dawn newspaper reported.
The 61-year-old Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Bajwa will retire on November 29. Bajwa was given an extension in 2019 for a second term of three years.
His remarks came at a lunch hosted at the Pakistan Embassy in Washington.
According to those who attended the event, Bajwa said the armed forces had distanced themselves from politics and wanted to continue to do so, the newspaper reported.
These remarks came in the wake of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s anti-military statement.
Bajwa has held the top post of Pakistan Army for six years. He was initially appointed in 2016, but after a three-year tenure, in 2019, the then government of Imran Khan extended his service for another three years.
The appointment of the Army Chief is the sole prerogative of the Prime Minister. The upcoming appointment of the new Army Chief is in the news for all the wrong reasons.
When Khan was in power, the opposition accused him of trying to bring in an army chief of his choice who could support his alleged agenda of torturing opposition leaders.
Ever since he lost power, the equation has changed and now Khan is saying that the coalition government wants to install an army chief of his choice to protect looted property and steal general elections.
The mighty military, which has ruled a coup-prone country for more than half of its 75-plus years of existence, has so far wielded considerable power in matters of security and foreign policy.
Bajwa also emphasized that reviving Pakistan’s debilitated economy should be the top priority of all as the nation would not be able to achieve its goals without a strong economy.
Addressing an audience, including several Pakistani diplomats, the army chief said, “There can be no diplomacy without a strong economy.”