CHIEF of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Friday became the first Pakistani Army Chief to have attended the passing out parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst which is not less than a honour and pride for the country given the fact that Sandhurst which opened back in 1802 is ranked amongst the world’s top military academies as it produced some of the great military leaders.
Many government leaders and princes have studied in Sandhurst including incumbent UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and the late King of Oman, Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said.
The very presence of Bajwa at the Academy implies not only the significance of Pakistan in the comity of nations but is also recognition of the contribution made by Pakistan for regional and global peace and security.
The successes achieved by our forces in the war on terrorism, in fact, are an example for other militaries to emulate.
The Army Chief really made his presence felt at the military academy through his visionary and farsighted speech which carried lessons not only for the passing out officers but also the military leaders.
Whilst stating that the onset of fourth industrial revolution, dual-use technologies and niche capabilities led by artificial intelligence are fundamentally altering the character of future wars, he said mankind’s destiny, more than ever before, hinges on our collective capacity to come together and take the route of peace and cooperation instead of conflict, communication instead of clash and multilateralism instead of self-preservation.
Indeed this is the way forward if we really want to give a better, peaceful and prosperous future to our coming generations free from conflicts.
It is, however, unfortunate that there are certain countries which still believe in expansionist and hegemonic policies and are perpetrating oppression and tyranny against the innocent people to achieve their sordid objectives.
It then becomes important for other countries to maintain a strong defence to foil the designs of such hostile elements.
Pakistan is doing the same to counter the Indian aggression. Given the history of relations between Pakistan and the UK, we are confident that both the countries will take the necessary strides for mutually beneficial defence cooperation.
