Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir said on Wednesday that Pakistan believes in maintaining balanced relationships with all friendly countries, a statement that comes during his trip to the US.

As per the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the COAS was received by the Ambassador of Pakistan to the US and engaged in a candid discourse with members of prominent US thinktanks and media.

“The COAS said Pakistan is a country of consequence both from geopolitical and geoeconomic perspectives and wishes to develop itself as a hub of connectivity and a gateway to Central Asia and beyond,” the ISPR said.

However, the country “eschews bloc politics” and believed in maintaining “balanced relationships” with all friendly countries, the statement added.

The COAS also “put across Pakistan’s perspective on regional security, transnational terrorism and importance of maintaining strategic stability in South Asia,” the statement said.

He highlighted Pakistan’s desire to broaden bilateral engagement with the US through long-term multi-domain partnerships and said his interactions during the visit to the US with political and military leadership have been positive.

On Kashmir and Gaza

COAS Munir stressed the need for resolving the Kashmir issue in accordance with the wishes of the people of Kashmir and UN resolutions.

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“Kashmir is an internationally accepted dispute and no unilateral action can alter the nature of this dispute against the wishes of millions of people in the area,” he said.

Further, the army chief highlighted the immediate need for ending sufferings in Gaza, provision of humanitarian assistance and implementation of the two-state resolution.

During his visit to the US, the army chief has held meetings with Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other high-ranking defence officials in Washington.

He also discussed cooperation in regional security matters with the commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM ) General Michael Erik Kurilla.