ISLAMABAD, Aug 6: Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Tariq Majid has said that the armed forces are prepared to face challenges of contemporary times and ready to defend the country against external and internal threats.

Addressing participants of a National Security Workshop here at the Joint Staff Headquarters here on Wednesday, Gen Tariq said the country’s nuclear assets were safe under an effective command and control structure.

Delegates attending the workshop visited Joint Staff Headquarters where they were given a briefing by Director General Joint Intelligence and Information Operations Maj-Gen Asif Yasin on “Pakistan’s security challenges”. They were also briefed by Director General Strategic Plans Division (SPD) Let-Gen (retd) Khalid Ahmad Kidwai on SPD’s role in development and safeguarding Pakistan’s nuclear assets.

The workshop is attended by top professionals from different facets of national life like policy-makers, ambassadors, senior military commanders, lawyers, businessmen, industrialists and media personnel who gather under the aegis of the National Defence University Islamabad to analyse national security aspects and make useful contributions.

The participants also visited General Headquarters where they were given a briefing on “Pakistan Army, challenges and response” by Director General Military Operations Maj-Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha.

The workshop has been organised to study the national security perspective, concepts, policies and strategies. The purpose of the workshop is to make the participants aware of the elements which constitute national power. The workshop will examine the evolution of strategic thought, geo-political concepts and geo-strategic determinants. It will also cover aspects of geo-political leadership and decision-making to assist policy-makers in making well-informed choices.