Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa on Saturday said that the Pakistan Army continued to support the government, whenever asked, according to the guidelines of the Constitution and the law.

Addressing the passing out parade of cadets at the Pakistan Military Academy Kakul, Gen Bajwa said the army had always supported the nation in the same way the nation had supported the army, especially when it was fighting physical battles.

He added that the army would continue to support the government and "defend our democratic values to the hilt".

The COAS said that Pakistan's institutions were growing stronger and were working together to serve the country.

"Like many countries in the past, we have also been subjected to wars and economic strangulation but we have survived. Now it is only through the synergy and actualisation of our true national potential that we shall rise and progress.

"We Pakistanis have proved that we can do wonders when we keep our national interests above our parochial, institutional and personal interests," he said.

He told the cadets that they were joining an army that "not only defeated the scourge of terrorism but also gave a bloody nose to an army five times bigger in February 2019".

Talking about the diversity of people recruited in the army, he said the Pakistan Army was a true reflection of the nation it represented. "You are a true microcosm of Pakistan," he told them.

Gen Bajwa cautioned the cadets that they would be held accountable for the prosperity and security of Pakistan, terming it a "unique burden of love and responsibility".

"I count it as a great honour that we stand before the nation as a trusted and accountable institution," he said.

"You must realise that peace is not an end in itself. Our efforts of decades will be wasted if we cannot protect the base from where our nation will rise to the heights of economic sovereignty and ideological maturity, thus truly becoming Quaid's Pakistan."

He said Pakistan's enemies were feeling "frustrated" because they had failed to cause doom and destruction and were now subjecting the country to a "24/7 hybrid war".

"This war is not fought on the battlefield but in the minds. In this new war, leadership at all levels is the target. The objective of hybrid war is to target the sense of hope in Pakistan and to perpetuate the perception that yahan kuch acha nahi ho sakta (nothing good can happen here). Let me tell you, yahan sab acha hoga (everything will be good here)," he added.

He advised the cadets not to get confused between genuine criticism and hybrid warfare. "Do not confuse sincere critique from hybrid. Most voices that might seem loud to you might come from a place of love, patriotism and trust and therefore, must be heeded," he said.

"We must listen to our people and apply corrections where needed. These voices are proof that we are alive and well as a nation that is moving in the right direction."

Gen Bajwa said that the actions of the army were guided by the Constitution and the national interests of Pakistan, adding that the country was secure from a "military point of view".