‘No aggressive designs against any country’

Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: President General Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday said Pakistan’s nuclear programme was security-driven and Islamabad did not harbour aggressive designs against any country.

He was addressing PAF officers at the Air Headquarters at Chaklala. The president said Pakistan was a responsible country and had never transferred nuclear technology to any country.

He said all efforts would be made to acquire modern technology to enhance the capability of Pakistan Air Force (PAF), which was a vital component of the country’s armed forces. The president was also briefed about the operational matters related to the PAF. The president paid rich tributes to the PAF performance during the recent escalation on the country’s borders with India and said: “Defence of the country’s territorial integrity is the responsibility of the armed forces.”

‘Can’t rely on others’: The president said it would be a fallacy to assume that anyone else would come to Pakistan’s assistance during the hour of trial. “We alone will have to face all challenges so we should rely on ourselves instead of looking around.”

The president said maintenance of the qualitative and deterrent capability of the country’s armed forces was imperative and “in our national interest.”

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