Some politicians exploiting war on terror: President

RAWALPINDI—President General Pervez Musharraf said Tuesday that terrorism is a threat to national security and it will be combated and crushed at all costs. The President presided over a day long 99th Corps Commanders’ Conference here at General Headquarters. Vice Chief of Army Staff, Corps Commanders and Principal Staff Officers attended the conference.
After recitation from the Holy Quran, President Musharraf dwelt at length on the international and regional environment and their relevance to the security of Pakistan; domestic environment and professional matters. Talking about the role of Security Forces in combating militancy and terrorism, the President said that given the complexity of the issue, various parties try to exploit it for petty vested interests and create gross misperceptions amongst the general public.
The President commended the performance of the Security Forces who were engaged in the sacred task in the supreme national interest. He said extreme care is being exercised to ensure that there is no loss of innocent lives or collateral damage while combating terrorists. This was also ensured in case of the recent Bajaur incident where we had evidence that militants were being trained. There were also intelligence reports about active involvement of these militant leaders in terrorist activities.
The President said: “We shall never close the option of dialogue and political settlement and it shall continue despite these actions, but we will undertake action wherever we find such militant activity. Terrorism is a threat to our national security which will be combated and crushed at all costs.”
In the context of domestic environment, the President said that we must control extremism, sustain economic and democratic reforms and address all issues that are critical to the country’s growth and security in the long term. A detailed presentation was held on security situation in FATA and Balochistan. The President explained in detail his vision and strategies to deal with the situation in FATA, Balochistan, strategy to sustain economic growth and bring down the benefits of the growing economy to people of Pakistan at the grassroots level.
The President appreciated the planning, organization and conduct of a recently held joint Pak-Turkish Field Exercise and plans for a similar interaction with the Royal Saudi Land Forces. He also appreciated the conduct of recently held wargames at Lahore and Gujranwala.
The President was briefed on to the Corps plans of Winter Collective Training Exercises which shall be conducted during the months of November and December.
The President emphasized upon mission oriented and rigorous field training combining all arms under realistic battlefield environment. He directed the field formations to test the operational planning carried out during the recently held wargames in the forthcoming collective training.—Agencies