ISLAMABAD: Top Pakistani and Bangladeshi military commanders have stressed the need for an enduring partnership between the two countries to remain “resilient against external influences,” the Pakistani military said on Tuesday, amid a thaw between the two countries since the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.
Pakistan and Bangladesh were once one nation, but they split in 1971 as a result of a bloody civil war, which saw the part previously referred to as East Pakistan seceding to form the independent nation of Bangladesh.
In the years since, Bangladeshi leaders, particularly former prime minister Hasina, chose to maintain close ties with India. Ties between Pakistan and Bangladesh have warmed up since Hasina’s ouster as a result of a student-led uprising in August, witnessing a marked improvement.
Amid the thaw, Lt. Gen. S M Kamr-ul-Hassan, principal staff officer (PSO) of the Armed Forces Division of Bangladesh, met Pakistan Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir in Rawalpindi, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.
“During their meeting, both held extensive discussions on the evolving security dynamics in the region and explored further avenues for enhancing bilateral military cooperation,” the ISPR said in a statement.
“The COAS and the PSO underscored the importance of a stronger defense relationship, emphasizing that the enduring partnership between the two brotherly nations must remain resilient against external influences.”
On the occasion, the Pakistan army chief reiterated the significance of joint efforts to promote peace and stability in South Asia and the broader region, while ensuring that both nations continue to contribute to regional security through “collaborative defense initiatives,” according to the ISPR.
Lt. Gen. Hassan acknowledged the sacrifices made by Pakistani armed forces in their fight against militancy, noting that their efforts serve as a beacon of “courage and determination.”
Earlier in the day, Pakistan and Bangladesh signed a landmark agreement to establish a joint business council, the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) said, amid efforts to enhance trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.
“The establishment of the Pakistan-Bangladesh Business Council is a milestone for trade relations between the two countries,” FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh said after signing the agreement in Dhaka, along with representatives of the Administrative Federation of the Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce.
During the visit, the FPCCI chief led a Pakistani business delegation that held meetings with their counterparts in Bangladesh to discuss ways to enhance trade ties. The Trade Corporation of Pakistan also signed a memorandum of understanding for rice export to Bangladesh on Tuesday.
Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar is also scheduled to visit Dhaka in the beginning of February to further consolidate the relations between the two countries.
Pakistan, Bangladesh commanders underscore enduring partnership for resilience against ‘external influences’
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Pakistan, Bangladesh commanders underscore enduring partnership for resilience against ‘external influences’
- Pakistan and Bangladesh were once one nation, but split in 1971 as a result of a bloody civil war
- Ties between both nations have warmed up since PM Hasina’s ouster due to an uprising in Aug.
Imran Khan not a ‘national security threat,’ ex-PM’s party responds to Pakistan military
- Pakistan’s military spokesperson on Friday described Khan’s anti-army narrative as a “national security threat”
- PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan says words used by military spokesperson for Khan were “not appropriate”
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Saturday responded to allegations by Pakistan military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry from a day earlier, saying that he was not a “national security threat.”
Chaudhry, who heads the military’s media wing as director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), spoke to journalists on Friday, in which he referred to Khan as a “mentally ill” person several times during the press interaction. Chaudhry described Khan’s anti-army narrative as a “national security threat.”
The military spokesperson was responding to Khan’s social media post this week in which he accused Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir of being responsible for “the complete collapse of the constitution and rule of law in Pakistan.”
“The people of Pakistan stand with Imran Khan, they stand with PTI,” the party’s secretary-general, Salman Akram Raja, told reporters during a news conference.
“Imran Khan is not a national security threat. Imran Khan has kept the people of this country united.”
Raja said there were several narratives in the country, including those that created tensions along ethnic and sectarian lines, but Khan had rejected all of them and stood with one that the people of Pakistan supported.
PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan, flanked by Raja, criticized the military spokesperson as well, saying his press talk on Thursday had “severely disappointed” him.
“The words that were used [by the military spokesperson] were not appropriate,” Gohar said. “Those words were wrong.”
‘NATURAL OUTCOME’
Speaking to reporters earlier on Saturday, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif defended the military spokesperson’s remarks against Khan.
“When this kind of language is used for individuals as well as for institutions, then a reaction is a natural outcome,” he said.
“The same thing is happening on the Twitter accounts being run in his [Khan’s] name. If the DG ISPR has given any reaction to it, then I believe it was a very measured reaction.”
Khan, who was ousted after a parliamentary vote of confidence in April 2022, blames the country’s powerful military for removing him from power by colluding with his political opponents. Both deny the allegations.
The former prime minister, who has been in prison since August 2023 on a slew of charges he says are politically motivated, also alleges his party was denied victory by the army and his political rivals in the 2024 general election through rigging.
The army and the government both deny his allegations.
