ISLAMABAD-
General Lloyd J. Austin III Commander United States Central Command (Centcom) on Monday held a meeting with Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif at the General Headquarters(GHQ) in Rawalpindi, private media reported.
According to an Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) press release, the US Centcom chief also hailed the sacrifices of Pakistan Army in context of the ongoing operation Zarb-e-Azb against terrorists.
The matters of mutual interest including bilateral defence cooperation and the overall regional security situation with special emphasis on Afghanistan came under discussion.
General Austin also laid a floral wreath at Yadgare-e- Shuhada to pay homage to Pakistani martyrs.
Earlier, US Centcom chief also visited the Defence Ministry in Rawalpindi and held a meeting with Defence Secretary Lt.Gen (r) Alam Khattak.
According to the Ministry of Defence sources, General Lloyd J. Austin III offered condolences over the Peshawar tragedy and lauded Pakistan’s role in the war against terrorism.
The Centcom chief has arrived in Pakistan on a two-day official visit and will also meet with US Secretary of State John Kerry tomorrow.
Defence sources further told that General Austin III is visiting Pakistan to assess the latest security situation in the region in the wake of the Dec 16 Taliban attack on Peshawar’s Army Public School, which left 150 people dead, including more than 140 schoolchildren, and to strengthen coordination between Pakistan and NATO forces in the post US drawdown situation in Afghanistan.
The US should support efforts of Pakistan to counter terrorism and bring perpetrators to justice. Pakistan’s policy on countering terrorism and extremism mainly stems from her primary foreign policy objective of global peace, security, stability, and development. Pakistan has become the hardest hit victim of the US produced terrorism and extremism, now it’s time for the US to eliminate it instead of complaining.
It is the moral duty of the international community to help Pakistan overcome its difficulties as it was helping them by successfully meeting the challenge of terrorists. Pakistan is engaged in putting its economy on a sound footing anyhow. Pakistan can rightly assert it has saved the global village from terrorism. Its government and people are united and determined to nip the evil in the bud so that the dream of turning Pakistan into a welfare state becomes a reality. That will go a long way in establishing an atmosphere of peace, economic development and prosperity. And, ultimately, the bonds of friendship will strengthen in the region.
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