—— Army Chief visits Gen Michael Erik Kurilla at US Central Command headquarters
—— US State Dept calls Pakistan major “non-Nato ally”, looks forward to partnerships on defence cooperation
RAWALPINDI: Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir visited the headquarters of US Central Command and engaged in discussions with Commander United States Central Command General Michael Erik Kurilla, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) informed on Tuesday.
As per the statement, the meeting focused on shared interests, with a particular emphasis on cooperation in regional security matters.
Both generals explored opportunities for collaborative training and emphasised the importance of enhancing training interactions between Centcom and the Pakistan Army. Additionally, the COAS toured the Centcom Joint Operations Center during the visit.
Last week, the COAS called on key US government and military officials during his visit to the US on Friday. The officials included Secretary of State Antony J Blinken, Secretary of Defense General (retd) Llyod J Austin, Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland, Deputy National Security Adviser Jonathan Finer and US Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q Brown.
According to the ISPR news release, matters of bilateral interests, global and regional security issues, and ongoing conflicts were discussed during the meetings. Both the sides agreed to continue engagement for exploring potential avenues of bilateral collaboration in pursuit of shared interests.
During the meetings with defence officials, counter-terrorism cooperation and defence collaboration were identified as core areas of cooperation. Both the sides reiterated the intent to increase interaction and explore ways to expand the scope of mutually beneficial engagements. The COAS underscored the importance of understanding each other’s perspectives on regional security issues and developments affecting strategic stability in South Asia.
In this context, the COAS especially highlighted the importance of resolving the Kashmir Issue in accordance with international law and relevant UNSC resolutions.
Moreover, in an interview with The Express Tribune, US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and Deputy Assistant Secretary responsible for Pakistan, South and Central Asia, Elizabeth Horst, during her visit to Pakistan last week, said “the US-Pakistan relationship right now is very strong because it is just about…the US and Pakistan together, not through a regional lens, not through any other lens.”
She said the US and Pakistan were starting a new chapter where the two could explore a lot of different topics of mutual interest where interests of the two overlapped. “We are…working with each other as partners.”
Elaborating, Horst said that climate, agriculture and water were the top three areas of cooperation under the new chapter.
On December 13, Blinken expressed solidarity with Pakistan after a deadly terrorist attack in Dera Ismail Khan martyred 23 military personnel.
Blinken said, “The US strongly condemns the terrorist attack at a security post in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” adding that the country stood with the people of Pakistan “in ensuring perpetrators are brought to justice”.
The United States threw its weight behind Pakistan in the wake of renewed threat posed by banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), as the key aide of President Biden said his country stands with Pakistan.
The support from the US came at a time when Pakistan is grappling with increased terrorist attacks being perpetrated by the TTP from across the border in Afghanistan. –Agencies
